


The World Be Damned

by Sanime



Category: Shadowhunters (TV)
Genre: Alec Lightwood Deserves Nice Things, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, BAMF Alec Lightwood, BAMF Magnus Bane, Fluff, Good Boyfriend Magnus Bane, Hurt/Comfort, Insecure Alec Lightwood, Multi, Secret Relationship, War
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-05-20
Updated: 2018-08-05
Packaged: 2018-11-02 20:33:28
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 24,537
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10952214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sanime/pseuds/Sanime
Summary: Alec Lightwood was terrible at hiding things from his siblings but there was one secret he had put his heart and soul into keeping safe. The Head of New York Institute was dating The High Warlock of Brooklyn. But the war is approaching and sides have to be chosen. Izzy and Jace have gotten tired of Alec hiding something and they have their suspicions. Revealing the truth could destroy everything Alec has ever fought for but loosing Magnus would destroy him.





	1. The Secret

**Author's Note:**

> I have another work in progress but this idea has been messing with my head for months now and I needed to get it out so I could continue that other story. Besides I always wanted a story where Izzy is in the dark about their relationship.

Alexander Gideon Lightwood was horrible at hiding things. That was the general knowledge to everyone in the Lightwood family. The young head of the New York Institute wore his heart on his sleeve no matter how much he tried to pretend he didn’t. True he wasn’t an open book, but it was almost pathetically obvious when he was hiding something. Knowing that he was hiding something was one thing, but getting the stubborn Shadowhunter to admit it was a completely different matter.

Isabelle had practiced the art of finding cracks in the walls around her brother’s heart her entire life. She was a master at what she did. Her gentle nature combined with her stubborn streak and sprinkled with the influence only little sisters possessed allowed her to get her way with her older brother on more than one occasion. 

She was the first one Alec ever admitted that he liked boys. His stuttering confession had been met with a gentle smile and a loving hug and Alec for the first time wondered who was protecting who. Maybe the protecting had always worked both ways and he just hadn’t noticed it before?

The second time he confessed his darkest secret was to his brother and parabatai Jace Wayland. He had received a toothy grin and a pat on the shoulder. Later Jace had handed him his ass in training. Jace had the means Izzy didn’t have access to, but their parabatai bond had never been used for spying on each other. Still, being unable to hide your own feelings was an obstacle like no other when it came to hiding things.

They were his family! His whole reason for living. And whether they liked it or not, Alec would die first before knowingly putting his siblings in danger. 

“Going home?” the deep familiar voice interrupted his musings and he turned around to see Jace standing in his office doorway. 

“Yeah, I’ve done the reports and already sorted out tomorrow’s to-do list,” Alec shrugged on his leather jacket and locking up the place headed down the hall with his brother at his side.

“It’s almost a year and I still can’t believe they allowed you to get your own place,” Jace groaned.

“I’m not the first Shadowhunter to not live in the Institute,” he looked at his frowning brother. “Besides, we both know it was for the better.”

“Well, you’ve certainly been happier,” Jace squinted at him suspiciously. “If our bond is still working as it should.”

“Well, having your own place has its perks,” Alec gently steered the conversation back from dangerous subjects. An art he was forced to master in the last year.

“I wouldn’t know. Me and Izzy are almost never allowed to stay there.”

“That’s because I bought it with the thought of having it all for myself. You and Izzy bringing your nightly conquests would cheapen the meaning,” Alec smirked at the blond man. “Besides, living like a soldier for 24/7 gets tiring. It’s nice to have a place where I can be just Alec.”

Jace gave him a quiet questioning look and Alec wanted to slap himself. The him from a couple of months ago would have never referred to himself as a soldier. At least not out loud. He cursed himself for how much a certain someone has influenced him.He just hoped Jace wouldn’t think much of his slipup. A pregnant pause invaded their light banter and Alec tried not to seem too nervous about his brother’s reaction.

“That’s it! I’m asking Clave to get me a place as well!!!” Jace finally groaned and Alec forced himself not to let his shoulders drop too suddenly revealing his suspicious relief.

“I wouldn’t mind,” he instead offered Jace.

“Yeah, right. And who would keep the Institute running while your lazy ass is enjoying a nice bath in you private homey apartment?” Jace snorted.

“Hey! I put in my night shifts!” Alec defended himself. “That was part of the deal.”

“Poor you. I am the one living in a house full of Shadowhunters, who lack the basic definition of the word fun,” Jace stopped and crossed his arms. They had reached the door.

“Don’t pretend you don’t get your fun,” Alec raised an eyebrow, having passed more than one of his brother’s conquests on his way to the Institute in the mornings.

“I’ll see you tomorrow!” Jace didn’t try to defend himself and just shook his head, giving him a strong clap on the back. He turned around to leave.

“Enjoy you boring nightly activities!” Alec shouted to Jace’s retreating form. 

“Get laid!” He yelled back.

Alec just chuckled and opened the door, taking a lungful of the night’s crisp air. His place was a half an hour's walk away. Close enough to get to the Institute in case there was an emergency but far enough to give him the necessary distance and with that – the freedom. 

He climbed the stairs to his third floor tiny apartment, fishing his keys out of his pocket and opening the door. He still couldn’t believe how big of a difference it made to have your own home. The sense of peace and calm that washed over him every time he stepped through the door and into the space that was uniquely his. He felt the small tingle at the back of his mind as he stepped through the wards. Immediately he was hit with a smell of herbs and tomato sauce. 

Hanging his leather jacket and getting out of his combat boots, he quietly padded into the kitchen. Alec took a moment to admire the broad shoulders and slender waist of the man shuffling around at the stove before closing the distance and wrapping his arms around the warm body and giving a chaste kiss the side of the neck.

“Nice to meet you too, Alexander,” a deep voice laughed quietly, but the man pressed back and twisting his neck laid a kiss on his cheek. “I hope you’re hungry.”

“Starving,” he answered, taking a moment to just inhale the sandalwood scent and breathe in the man that he had grown to love with his heart and soul.

“Good, I am almost done,” the warlock shifted to mix the red sauce in the pan and Alec noticed the blue streaks in his black hair. As soon as the lid was back on the pan and both of his hands were free the man turned around in Alec’s embrace and the shadowhunter was met with two golden eyes that with their cat-like pupils possessed an intimidating sharpness but could still radiate the softest of all loves. 

“I love you, Magnus,” Alec leaned down to kiss those sinfully delicious lips and pressed the warlock tighter against himself.

Magnus returned his kiss with a gentle caress that soon turned into a barely suppressed want. Alec could swear he could taste how much Magnus had missed him on the warlock’s tongue. They hadn’t seen each other for three days with Magnus having to go the Rome for work and Alec staying in the institute to get rid of some piled-up paperwork. It was one of their strategies to make Alec seem like the old workaholic self (though he still put in inhumanly long hours).

“I love you too, Alexander!” The warlock smiled at him as soon as Alec had gathered enough self-control to break the kiss.

The man in front of his eyes was magnificent. A strong body that could move with deadly precision but at the same time hold him like he was the most precious being in the universe. A smile that could either be so full of disdain it made you feel like the most insignificant bug on the planet or so kind and gentle your insides turned all warm and fuzzy. Alec could feel the strength of Magnus under his fingertips, the magic quietly thrumming just under the skin and the muscles built to protect. The High Warlock of Brooklyn could have had everything he wanted but he chose a Shadowhunter, who had stumbled in his life injured and barely alive. He possessed so many things but he decided that the most important of them all was Alec’s heart. 

Alec wanted to be able to introduce this man to his family. Show them not a Warlock or a Downworlder but a man who deemed Alec worthy enough to let him into his life and trust him with his heart. Alec still wasn’t sure whether he had earned it. He couldn’t offer Magnus what others could. Certainly not what he saw in all those mundane romance movies Alec had been forced to watch by Magnus.

“A penny for your thoughts?” A gentle caress on his cheek brought Alec out of his thoughts that would surely lead him down a dark path.

“Nothing unusual,” Alec brushed his thumb over Magnus’ forehead, trying to make the crease of worry there disappear. “Just you.”

“Then I am clearly doing something wrong if thinking about me makes you look like that,” Magnus pouted.

“I was thinking about my family as well,” he added with a shrug.

“Oh,” Magnus’ eyes lost some of its carefree light and his expression turned somber. “Alexander, you know I would love nothing more than to meet your family, but-” 

“It’s too dangerous. I know. I was the one who came up with this secret relationship bullshit anyway,” Alec sighed.

“I don’t want our relationship to cost you your life as a Shadowhunter,” Magnus cupped his face and Alec was forced to look into his gentle eyes. “I love that part of you as well.”

“It’s not like you don’t have anything to lose. Dating a Shadowhunter? You would lose your reputation.” Alec bore into those eyes and then bitterly added. “And with that half of your clients.”

A dangerous flash sparked in Magnus’ cat eyes.

“I can rebuild by reputation and find new clients.”

“There are just so many risks and variables,” Alec sighed and pushed away from Magnus’ embrace, suddenly feeling like the air in the flat was freezing cold. “And it feels unfair to drag you down with me.” He dropped down on the black couch, hiding his face in his palms.

“Last time I checked this relationship was mutual,” Magnus’ voice lost some of its gentleness. “And so was the decision to keep it a secret.”

“But for how long?” Alec raised his head, hearing his own desperation in the voice. “Till Downworlders get their revenge for the Soul Sword? Till an all-out war breaks out and we are forced to choose a side?”

“Alexan-”

“I thought we would capture Valentine and it would get better,” Alec brought his head down and clutched at his hair. “It’s just gonna get worse and worse, and worse.”

“What are you afraid of, Alexander?” Alec heard steps approaching and the couch shift as a weight settled next to him. “Hurting your family by coming out or choosing a side?”

A strong hand wrapped around his shoulders and Alec didn’t want to fight against its pull so he ended up with his face in the crook of Magnus’ neck. 

“I am afraid of losing you.”

“And why in the name of Lilith, would that ever happen?” Magnus’ breath fanned over his neck.

“I can’t go out with you in public. I can’t introduce you to my family. If I do that, you could lose your status, my siblings would be put in danger, I would probably be stripped of my runes and our relationship would become a target for ridicule and hate. If I don’t do that we will most likely be forced against each other in a very near future,” Alec let the words and insecurities flow out along with the shallow puffs of air. “What kind of relationship is that? It is certainly not something you deserve.”

Magnus stayed quiet for a long while and Alec pulled back to look at him, fear already settling in his stomach.

What he saw made the breath catch in his throat. Magnus was looking at him with such raw sadness and pain that it almost felt like a physical kick to his stomach.

“Oh, Alexander,” Magnus cupped his head, his golden eyes boring into his hazel ones. “The only reason I would want to go public would be to show off what an amazing boyfriend I have. I would never let anyone lay a single finger on you and my relationship with you is purely private and has nothing to do with what others may think of it.”

“But-”

“Listen, Alexander,” Magnus didn’t let him interrupt and pressed on. “You and our relationship mean everything to mean. I don’t deserve anything better or worse than this. And as far us choosing sides goes, darling, there is no side I would rather be at, than yours. I am perfectly happy where I am.”

“That’s not fair,” Alec sighed, bringing his arms around Magnus and crushing the warlock against him.

“I love you too, angel,” Magnus gave a small laugh and Alec just tightened his hold. They stayed like that, wrapped around each other, till Alec’s breath finally evened out and the thoughts in his head stopped their whirlwind and all that was left was the feeling of love and safety. A gentle caress over the nape of his neck allowing him to forget about what was happening outside his tiny apartment and focus on the warmth pressed against him.

“What brought this on?” Alec finally heard Magnus speak and hummed in response. “This hasn’t happened in months.”

“I was speaking to Jace,” Alec turned his head to speak better. “And I referred to myself as a soldier.”

“That’s not false.”

“Yeah, but that is something you would say. I would never say it out loud,” Alec explained and when Magnus didn’t say anything in return he continued. “It just that, I’ve changed so much since meeting you and I can’t show it to Jace or Izzy. I know they would be proud.”

“We could tell them,” Magnus suggested kindly but Alec shook his head against the warlock’s chest.

“I don’t want to force my secret on them,” he paused for a moment, thinking. “But they are definitely the first we’re going to tell.”

“Absolutely,” Magnus chuckled, moving his hand to run it through Alec’s messy locks. 

Alec would have loved to stay like that for the rest of his life, safe and warm in Magnus’ embrace, but his empty stomach made itself known. He felt a bit disappointed having to leave the embrace but Magnus just laughed at him softly and slid out from beneath him, evening out his wrinkled clothes. 

“My Bolognese better not be cold,” he squinted at the stove in the kitchen, where it was adjoined to the living area.

“Sorry,” Alec followed the warlock into the kitchen and sat down at the table.

“I suggest you show me how much remorse you feel after I get you in the bedroom,” Magnus smirked at him and with a snap of his fingers, the sauce and the pasta were piping hot again.

Alec felt the blush creep high on his cheeks but he couldn’t help the smile.

The Shadowhunter Alec Lightwood loved The High Warlock of Brooklyn Magnus Bane and the whole world be damned.

At least for that evening.


	2. The Bad Guy

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait. I hope the slightly longer chapter makes up for it. I'm taking some liberty in playing with the events of the show. Let me know if it seems to be a mess and you don't understand what's happening.

Alec had always been an early riser but he had never quite enjoyed it. At least not like he does it now when he has a warm body pressed into his side and soft huffs of air tickling his skin where Magnus has buried his nose under his chin.

He loved waking up and gently stroking the caramel skin of his lover, hearing the occasional mumble of his name, and feel the arm around his waist tighten its grip. It was intoxicating.

Magnus was intoxicating and by now Alec was dependent on it.

On Magnus.

“Too early,” he heard a sleepy whine from Magnus and smiled fondly at him before kissing the top of his head.

“Shh, go back to sleep, Mags,” he whispered and Magnus buried himself deeper into Alec’s embrace with a content sigh.

Alec himself spent the next half an hour lazily running his fingers through Magnus’ hair and down his back with the morning light sneaking in between the drawn curtains creating a scarlet colored dusk against the red décor. Alec was floating somewhere between sleep and wakefulness, listening to their combined heartbeats and Magnus’ peaceful breaths fluttering against his skin, enjoying the calm that only came with a lazy and quiet morning spent in bed with a loved one.

His thoughts flew everywhere and at the same time nowhere. He would think about needing to clean his bow or finding a present for Max’s birthday or buying milk. He would think about something insignificant like the weather and then drift to the bittersweet thoughts of his siblings. And somewhere along the way, he found himself remembering the last night’s meltdown.

“Babe?” Magnus’ next to him shifted and propped his chin on his chest.

“Sorry,” Alec whispered, releasing his hold on Magnus which had become uncomfortably tight.

“What’s bothering you?” Magnus dismissed the unnecessary apology and rolled himself on top of his lover forcing Alec to make eye contact.

“Nothing,” Alec smiled, brushing a stray lock away from Magnus’ golden cat eyes.

Alec knew that he couldn’t fool the warlock. His eyes gained unyielding sharpness and Alec huffed. He pulled Magnus down to kiss the soft lips determined to at least get his morning kiss if he couldn’t avoid the questions.

Magnus’ lips yielded and he was greeted by the feeling of coming home.

“I love you,” Alec whispered when he was forced to retreat and provide his lungs with some necessary air. “That’s what I was thinking about.”

“I love you too, Alexander,” Magnus’ cat eyes bore into his and Alec could see the moment Magnus understood the truth. Alec held the questioning gaze baring his soul to his lover before Magnus decided to shift on all fours barracking Alec within his limbs and leaning down so that their noses brushed against each other. “Let me show you just how much I love you.”

Alec groaned at the promise and buried his hand in the warlock’s hair. The kiss was still sweet and loving but it also contained passion and desire from which Alec couldn’t help but moan.

Magnus’ hand was traveling south to remove his black boxers when a loud beep from the bedside table made Alec turn his head with a disappointed sigh.

Magnus plopped down on his chest with an annoyed growl, “Your phone has a suspiciously good timing at interrupting us.”

“It’s Jace,” Alec explained, seeing the name of the text sender, “he says I have to get to the Institute ASAP.” The Shadowhunter frowned at the urgency, debating what could possibly be that crucial so early in the morning when he received the second message. “Someone from the Clave is coming,” Alec gasped at the text and Magnus rolled off of him. He sat cross-legged next to him on the bed with a worried frown.

“Why would the Clave send someone?” He asked, but Alec only shook his head, not having an answer either and opting for hearing it from Jace himself. He started looking for his clothes.

He dialed Jace’s number with one hand and pulled on his jeans with the other while Magnus tied a robe around himself.

“Alec, you have to come back,” Jace picked up after the second ring, sounding frustrated.

“What the hell, Jace? Why is the Clave coming?”

“I don’t know the details, but we’ve received an order for all personnel of the Institute to be questioned,” Jace answered before Alec heard him shouting for Clary. He frowned.

“Any idea on what grounds?” Alec was frantically looking around for his shirt when Magnus handed it to him. He mouthed a silent “thank you” before focusing back on the call.

“I thought they’d tell you,” Jace sounded exasperated and Alec couldn’t disagree.

“The Clave hasn’t told me anything,” Alec growled squeezing the phone between his ear and shoulder while pulling on his combat boots. “They are not too fond of sharing.”

“Then we’ll find out when they arrive,” Jace growled as Alec noticed Clary’s voice in the background. “I have to go.”

“I’m on my way,” Alec answered before disconnecting the phone call and throwing a worried glance at Magnus.

“What’s wrong?” Magnus questioned, bringing him his jacket.

“I don’t know,” Alec admitted and shrugged the jacket on, appreciating the slightly longer pause of Magnus’ palm on his shoulder. “I’ll wash up at the Institute,” he pecked Magnus on the lips, trying to not let the appehension in Magnus’ eyes get to him too much.

“Be careful,” Magnus whispered.

“Always.”

“I’ll make you a portal,” he offered before a single wave of a hand created the swirling mass of energy in the small living room.

“I love you,” he said before disappearing into the portal, his heart hammering against his ribcage in a silent worry.

He stepped out a block away from the Institute and activating his speed, ran the rest of the way. As he entered the glamored cathedral he was met with a frenzy and bodies rushing everywhere.

The first Shadowhunter to notice him abruptly stopped in his tracks almost dropping the stack of knives in his arms.

“What’s the meaning of this, sir? Why are we about to be interrogated?” He asked, eyes wide with uncertainty and a hint of fear. Alec could understand the fellow soldier. Clave’s interrogations were not to be taken lightly.

“I’m planning on figuring that out but there’s no reason to worry,” Alec squared his shoulders and answered. “It’s most likely a standard procedure.”

“Alec,” Jace rounded the corner and he excused himself to join his _parabatai_.

“Any news?”

Jace’s grim expression told him there was, “Three Clave representatives portaled here a couple of minutes ago. I sent them to your office. ”

“Thanks,” Alec tried to steel himself for the upcoming encounter. “I’ll take it from here.”

Heading for his office, Alec briefly looked at the nearby screen to see the time. Seven in the morning was definitely too early for this kind of commotion and the last thing he wanted was to deal with the Clave so early in the day.

“Alec Lightwood,” he was greeted as soon as he opened his office door and his eyes fell on the three figures making themselves comfortable in his work space before making his way towards his desk.

“I would like to hear an explanation,” he bypassed the formalities and addressed them in an ice cold voice. “On what grounds are you planning to question this Institute?”

“We have reason to believe there’s been a breach in security,” one of the men stepped closer and Alec assumed him to be the leader. “Thomas Hillway, nice to meet you,” he extended his arm but Alec couldn’t bring himself to shake it. He eyed the limb coldly before eyeing the two companions.

“These are Jordan Blackfeather and Michael Thornbridge,” Thomas sensing his hostility retired his arm and instead motioned to the two men. Alec didn’t recognize the companions, though he was sure he had seen Thomas in Idris a couple of times. His shortly cut hair, combat boots and clothing showed him to be a fellow soldier but his highly raised chin and cold eyes spoke volumes about his ego.

Alec observed them suspiciously before turning back to the conversation, “And what makes you think there’s been a breach?”

Thomas reached into his jacket’s pocket and slid a paper onto his desk. An upturned photograph.

Alec reached forward and with a brief glance at Thomas turned it over. What he saw on the other side made his heart stop for a moment and only his training as a soldier prevented him from showing his shock and completely outing himself.

It was a picture of Magnus and him in a side alley. Granted, the picture was dark and he couldn’t be recognized because he had his back turned to the camera, but the glow where Magnus’ magic was healing a wound on his right arm clearly illuminated the black lines of a rune and Magnus’ worried face. There was no misunderstanding that it was a shadowhunter. The scattered sword on the side was a proof to that.

Alec remembered that night when they had been ambushed by a demon on their way to a date. The venom had made Alec sick and Magnus had wrapped an arm around his chest to keep him from falling to the ground. Alec still remembers Magnus’ frantic heartbeat against his left arm where it was pressed against Magnus’ chest and the short breaths of air against the side of his neck as Magnus muttered encouragements and promises to him.

It had happened a couple of months ago. In Venice. They never risked going on a date in New York so they wouldn’t be caught together.

“And?” Alec raised an eyebrow at Thomas, hoping it was enough to mask his slowly rising panic. “What do you want me to do? Send the High Warlock of Brooklyn a thank you card for helping a Shadowhunter?”

“Don’t be stupid, Lightwood,” Thomas snarled but Alec managed to hold on to his amused façade. “According to the source, they shared a kiss afterward.”

Alec grabbed the edge of his desk trying to channel his terror somewhere where Thomas and his goons wouldn’t immediately pick up on it.

“And?” Alec acted annoyed. “Since when a single Shadowhunter’s relationship is Clave’s business and asks for an interrogation? And how do you know it’s a shadowhunter from this Institute.”

“Since today,” Thomas’ smug face made Alec feel sick and when the man passed him a letter with Claves seal on it he was almost tempted to throw it away. “After considering the ongoing situation, Clave has announced that any fornicating with Downworlders is punishable with de-runing and exile. Since Magnus Bane’s permanent residence is known to be Brooklyn it only made sense to start here.”

“It’s ridiculous!” Alec snapped before he could think better of it. “We are here to protect them, not treat them like some kind of monsters.”

“How can you still say that after the recent Shadowhunter killings by a single Seelie? They’ve killed hundreds of us.”

“And we’ve killed thousands of them!” Alec slammed his palms on the desk. “What you’re doing here is not going to make anything better. You’re going to start a war. And going after the lover of one of the most powerful warlocks in the world is not as subtle as Clave might like to think.”

“The Law is the law,” Thomas answered calmly while Alec barely suppressed the urge to punch the guy. “Besides it might as well just be a one-night stand and the warlock wouldn’t even care.”

Alec forced himself to ignore the comment and focused on the situation which was slowly starting to slip through his fingers.

“Even more so. I’m not going to let you de-rune one of my soldiers because of a rule the Clave invented today!” Alec fought against, trying to swallow the rising panic. Everything was falling apart. His life. His relationship. Magnus. Alec couldn’t allow himself to think about Magnus or he would break and it was not an option at the moment.

“The relationships between Shadowhunters and Downworlders have never been recognized,” the Clave representative. “Punishment to the Shadowhunter found guilty may not be de-runing but a trial will be held.”

“This is crazy!” Alec looked at the order from the Clave in his hand, hating every single letter written there on the pristine white paper.

“We’ll need a list of every Shadowhunter in this Institute,” Thomas went on despite his protests while Alec felt like he was talking to a stone wall. “We’ll set up and start at noon.”

“And how are you planning on finding out the truth?” Alec questioned, thought he had a feeling that he won’t hear an answer he’d like. “The Soul Sword is still missing.”

“We have our ways,” Thomas answered curtly. Alec gritted his teeth at the implication.

“Torture,” ha gritted out.

“If necessary,” the man nodded. “Though I am sure, everyone will be willing to corporate.”

“That’s…”

“These are drastic times, Alec Lightwood,” Thomas shrugged as he turned to the door. The two men following his lead.

“No,” Alec growled as all three man exited his office. “The Clave likes drastic measures.”

He craved to call Magnus and warn him but he didn’t have much time and Alec was not about to let three trigger-happy thugs interrogate his subordinates for a supposed-to-be crime he has committed. If Clave wanted to make a criminal out of him, he’ll play by their rules and be the bad guy.

 

* * *

 

Jace had a bad feeling forming in the pit of his stomach ever since he left the Institute for the mission Alec had sent him and the girls on.

“I’m going to need new shoes,” Izzy groaned behind him and Jace briefly looked back to see her scowling at her torn boot.

Next to her Clary was trying to get some ichor off of her leather jacket with an equally unhappy frown.

With a fond huff of breath, he turned back to the front, feeling content with the mission going well and loving the gentle throb in his muscles. He was tired and probably stank horribly but it couldn’t overshadow his sense of accomplishment.

They had just rounded another corner when Jace heard a faint call of his name. A quick look around showed a group of Shadowhunters briskly walking towards them.

“Chris,” he called out as the group finally reached them and he shook the leading man’s hand. “You’re in the field?”

“For quite some time, yeah,” the leader of the group answered. “Been running these slack-offs ragged.”

Jace peered around him to count almost a dozen of shadowhunters all panting and sweaty.

“Alec asked me to run some large group field scenarios,” Chris explained and gave them a lopsided smile. “Honestly I’m glad. The longer I get to avoid those Clave envoys the better. I’m not rushing to have a chat with them.”

“Me neither,” Jace agreed. He looked up at the sun, its light heavy on their shoulders. It was well past noon and he couldn’t wait to get back to the coolness of the Institute.

“I see your day was more interesting,” Chris gestures at their ichor-covered clothes.

“A couple of Shax demons,” Izzy explained. “Though we spent more time trying to catch them than kill them.”

“They ran?” Chris raised his eyebrows in surprise as they slowly started to make their way back to the Institute.

“Yeah,” Jace shrugged and completely forgot about the small talk when he felt a wave of white-hot anger role through him from his _parabatai_ rune.

He frowned at the intense emotion. Izzy and Clary had engaged in a conversation with Chris’ men but he couldn’t quite quench the worry. Alec had seemed off the whole morning and he felt a sudden need to go see him. Knowing how much Alec hated being cornered he decided to talk to him before Izzy picked up on Alec’s mood.

Before activating his speed rune and running off he briefly warned the girls, “I have to take care of something.”

“What?” He heard Clary’s confused question but didn’t turn back. Instead, he raced to the Institute as fast as his speed rune allowed it. A part of him hoped that he was just overreacting and that Alec was fine, and it was just the men from the Clave that had angered him, but he remembered the overbearing sadness he had felt last night and the fright this morning. Whatever was happening to Alec was leaving him to be a tangled mess of emotions.

As he reached the Institute he slowed down enough to take a deep breath and seem as casual as possible before opening the door. Immediately he was greeted by shouting voices and pulling out his knife he quietly advanced further in. He recognized one of the voices as Alec’s and it sounded like he was arguing his heart out.

As he reached the op center he stopped mid-step noticing for the first time how eerily quiet it was. The room was empty. Where normally there were shadowhunters bursting with activity were only lonely beeping screens and empty chairs. Taking a look around he didn’t notice a single shadowhunter at their stations.

He was pulled out of his stupor by the shouting which only seemed to increase in volume with every passing second. As Jace followed the sound and headed for his _parabatai’s_ office he tried to catch on on what the issue for the shouting match was.

“You can’t do this, Lightwood!” He recognized the voice of one of the Clave representatives. His name being something Tim related.

“I have the authority over this Institute. Whatever say goes,” Alec countered. His voice sounded tight and annoyed.

“The Clave will hear about this!”

“Let them!” Alec taunted just as Jace pushed the office door open and once again stopped in his tracks. 

The office was a mess. Two of the Clave envoys were lying face down on the floor, clearly unconscious, a chair was broken, papers were everywhere and Alec was currently engaged in a standoff with the remaining guest. His bowstring was pulled back tight and an arrow was aimed and unwavering all the while the guy opposing him was red in the face and heaved in anger.

“Wayland!” The guy noticed him. “Disarm you crazy _parabatai_ at once! That’s an order.”

Jace snarled, “I don’t take orders from you.”

“It’s an order from the Clave!” The guy screeched, angered by the clear lack of obedience.

Jace ignored him and turned to his brother, feeling a deep panic bubbling to the surface from their shared rune, “Alec, what the hell is going on? Where is everyone?”

“On missions,” Alec answered calmly, his eyes not moving from the envoy.

“All of them?” Jace gasped.

“Yes,” Alec spoke with confidence, and Jace saw how certain Alec was of his own actions. “Their job comes first. And some immoral Clave investigation – second.”

“That is not how the Clave will see it,” the man finally seemed to calm down more or less. At least his skin tone dropped from tomato red to bright pink. “It’s a serious offense which needs to be resolved.”

“What is?” Jace asked. He hadn’t yet heard the reason for the interrogation and had been sent out on a mission before he managed to ask.

“The Clave wants to de-rune a shadowhunter for engaging in a romantic relationship with a Downworlder,” Alec snarled, his eyes squinting at the envoy in hatred.

“De-rune? Why?” Jace felt an anger similar to Alec’s surface inside of him. Before the incident with the Soul Sword, he had had his own share of encounters with Downworld’s female population.  Izzy had a relationship with Meliorn. Clary was friends with Simon, though he wasn’t sure where they stood after the Seelie court fiasco. It wasn’t unheard of. True, after recent events Clave had made it clear that there needs to be a line drawn, but it wasn’t like they ever listened to them.

“It’s a breach of safety,” the Clave envoy answered. “We can’t have shadowhunters leaking information to the enemy.”

“Enemy?” Alec growled. “We’re more of an enemy to them than they are to us.”

“Nevertheless, starting today any personal interactions with the Downworlders are forbidden,” Tim-what’s-his-name stated.

“This is ridiculous,” Jace tightened his grip on the knife. “You’re gonna punish a Shadowhunter for a crime they didn’t know was a crime?”

“An example needs to be set,” he answered in the same monotone voice like reciting a law from a book.

Jace noticed his patience was barely hanging on by a thread but still asked the question. This time addressing Alec, “How do they know that it’s a shadowhunter from this Institute?”

“Apparently their anonymous source saw a shadowhunter kissing Magnus Bane, the High Warlock of Brooklyn,” Alec's eyes hardened as he explained.

“What anonymous source?”

“It’s anonymous,” the envoy raised a mocking eyebrow. “That’s why we call it an anonymous source.”

“Don’t be a smartass, Tim,” Jace snarled. “I could still allow Alec to shoot you and help him bury the body.”

“It’s Thomas!” he shouted.

Jace only shrugged in response.   

“All I see is that you wanna ruin some poor shadowhunter’s life based on an evidence you have no proof actually exist,” Jace paused and smirked before adding, “Tim.”

From the corner of the eye, he saw Alec’s lips barely pulling upward. The envoy was back to being tomato red and Jace allowed a pleased smile to form on his lips as Thomas’ eyes darted between him and Alec until finally seeming to come to a conclusion.

“There will be consequences!” Thomas growled before storming out of the office.

Jace saw the opportunity and couldn’t resist from calling after him, “Hey, you forgot your buddies!!!”

That earned him a well-aimed elbow in the ribs but he still deemed it a success when he heard doors slamming shut somewhere in the Institute and a muffled shout of anger.

“Alec, by the Angel,” he turned to his brother whose shoulders slumped as he gently put the bow on his desk. His lips were pulled together in an attempt to control his emotions but Jace could sense the worry rolling in waves off of him and no matter how hard Alec tried he could see the fear in the depths of his eyes.

“Jace, just don’t,” he begged and Jace found himself unable to ignore his parabatai’s plea.

He sighed, “Fine, but this is not going to end well. The Clave will act.”

“I know.”

“What you did was stupid,” he added, needing to get it out there.

He only received a tight nod in return as Alec took his seat behind the desk and clenched his hair in tight fists.

Jace felt that he would get nowhere if he tried to confront him now so he opted a different strategy.

He maneuvered his way around the still unconscious men and went in the search of Izzy, leaving Alec to his own thoughts. It was time to get to the bottom of things and there was no better accomplice than his sister.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some heavy stuff is brewing...  
> Well? Was it any good?
> 
> I would appreciate if someone would like to beta-read this monster!


	3. The Loved Ones

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back with another chapter for those of you who have still stuck around with my irregular updates! :)

Magnus scowled at his chipped fingernail. He’d been sitting on the sofa for a good hour, silently losing his mind with worry, eying the darkening skies as the sun slowly receded behind the horizon and the night time New York awoke. He had attempted to take some clients and fix some of the previously ordered potions but he found his mind returning to Alexander every few minutes. The early morning visit from the Clave had been making his heart pound in worry, and that was even before Alexander had called him with the weirdest request he had ever heard.

He had listened, bewildered, as Alexander begged him to summon demons for his Shadowhunters to hunt. From his slightly panicked tone, Magnus knew better than to pry too much about the reasons why, but he relaxed a little when Alec promised to explain everything later. After promising Alec that he would summon the demons harmless enough to keep them under his control, but cause enough havoc to get the attention of Shadowhunters, Alec hung up with Magnus barely managing to warn him to be careful.

His phone beeped, signaling an incoming text message and he scrambled to see what it was. He smiled when he saw Alexander’s name, but it turned to a frown when he saw the message just contained a set of co-ordinates, and nothing else. Nevertheless, he sent a quick reply to let him know that he would be there in five minutes, and stood to get ready.

The coordinates turned out to be an abandoned warehouse by the port. Magnus made sure of his surroundings before stepping inside, curious but remaining cautious at the same time, eyeing the dark shadows behind him for possible movements. He had been prepared for many things when he entered, but nothing could have prepared him for the scene in front of him: his lover standing in front of him with an arrow nocked and aimed at his heart.

“Alexander,” he breathed out, slightly raising his arms in a gesture of peace. “What’s wrong, my love?”

Alec eyed him carefully before his grip on the weapon loosened and his weapons dropped. Alec let them clatter the floor as he swept forward and scooped him into his arms.

“Darling?” Cold fear crept through him into him, witnessing the weird behavior but Alec didn’t let him ask any more questions and crushed their lips together.

It was all lips and tongue and teeth and Magnus could feel Alec’s shoulders trembling where his hands laid on them. It was a desperate kiss but Magnus returned it, feeling that it was the only thing he knew to do at the moment. He was allowing Alec to get lost in the kisses and in the hug that was a bit too uncomfortable for Magnus’ ribs when he tasted something salty in the kiss. He felt the droplets of tears hitting his own cheeks, and Magnus grasped Alexander’s head between his hands, pulling back so he could take a careful look at his man.

The Shadowhunter was reluctant to let go and turned his face away at the separation. But Magnus persisted, and coaxed Alec’s head up with slow, circular movements on his cheekbones until their eyes met. The raw fear he saw in Alec’s eyes crashed into him like a train and cold chills ran down his spine.

“Alexander,” he whispered in a coarse voice. “What’s going on?”

Alec’s hands kept trailing up and down his sides but instead of calming him down it, unsettled Magnus even more. The Shadowhunter took in a deep breath, his fists clenching the lapels of Magnus’ jacket before answering.

“They know,” Alec choked out. “They know.”

“Know about what?” Magnus asked, though he had a pretty good idea of who was ‘they’ and what it was that they knew.

Instead of answering Alec pulled a piece of paper from inner breast pocket and unfolded it between them to show a picture. Magnus allowed his hands to slide down Alec’s cheeks to his shoulders, elbows and hands to calm Alec’s trembling fingers.

He didn’t need any more explanation to know it was from their date in Italy.

“How did they get it?” Magnus grasped the picture, trying to hide how uneven his breath came when his fingers touched the edge of the item that could ruin their lives. It was ridiculous how such a small, insignificant piece of paper could uproot everything Magnus held dear.

“They say it’s an anonymous source,” Alec answered more calmly. His fingers had stopped shaking. “But, Magnus, it’s bad. They banned any personal interactions between Shadowhunters and Downworlders.”

“What?” Magnus snapped his eyes back to Alec, hoping he’d misheard.

“They say it’s a breach of safety,” he explained.

Magnus couldn’t believe his ears. “That’s ridiculous.”

“I know,” Alec sighed and his forehead came to rest against Magnus’. “They’re threatening to de-rune the shadowhunter in the picture.”

“What?” Magnus cried out. He couldn’t believe what was happening. He desperately wished Alec would stop talking, but at the same time he needed to know more. Alec brought his hand to Magnus’ cheek, running a thumb over his cheekbone.

“I don’t know what to do,” he breathed.

Magnus squeezed his eyes shut; already feeling his heart breaking. He took a deep breath, hating what he was about to say, but one look at the picture made him put in the effort and force the repulsive words out, “Alexander, maybe we should sto…”

“NO!” Alec shouted, grabbing him by the shoulders and crouching to his eye-level.

“Alexander,” Magnus whined in frustration. He knew his offer was the logical one. The most painful one, yes, but also the safest, especially for Alexander.

“No,” Alec reiterated. “The only think that kept me going after finding out was that we could do this together. I can’t deal with this if you’re not there.”

“Alexander, this is your life,” Magnus was desperate to make him understand. “I don’t care what happens to me, but they are your people, your family.”

Alec blinked at his burst-out taking a moment of silence before answering. “You’re my family too,” he whispered, leaning in.

Magnus knew what he was doing and he cursed his own weakness before he leaned in to meet his lover’s lips. The heartache in his chest only digging deeper at how mournful it was. He didn’t care anymore. He allowed his own tears to fall and he let go of that damned picture in favor of pulling Alec closer.

“I love you,” Alec whispered between the kisses. Magnus was too overwhelmed to say anything back, so he settled for nodding his head.

“I need you,” Alec whispered when they separated for air and Magnus choked at the emotion. He pulled Alec in again before the shadowhunter could shatter his heart even more.

“I can’t leave you,” Alec managed to whisper again and it was all too much.

His heart ached, his lips were sore and his eyes burned. Magnus couldn’t go on anymore. He gasped a pained breath against Alec’s lips before his knees gave out and they slid down to the floor together.

He buried his face in Alexander’s neck allowing the sobs to wrack his body in painful spasms, painfully aware of Alec’s own tears hitting his neck. The embrace was warm and safe and Magnus could almost fool himself into believing that the rest of the world didn’t exist but they were in an empty warehouse and sitting on a very dirty floor which probably hadn’t seen a mop for years.

An involuntary laugh escaped his lips and Alec pulled back with a confused pout on his lips.

“What’s so funny?”

“Nothing,” Magnus shook his head. “Just that my designer jeans don’t appreciate our current setup.”

Alec blinked at him in confusion before he chuckled and stood, pulling Magnus along with him. “Our whole world is crashing down around us and you’re worrying about your pants,” he shook his head fondly.

“Hey, I remember you liking how good my ass looked in these jeans,” Magnus smirked at his lover, proud that he had successfully lightened the mood.

“I like your ass in whatever you wear,” Alec pecked him on the lips.

“I’ll take that as a compliment,” Magnus entwined their fingers and looked at their joined hands.

He’d gotten so used the feeling of Alec’s hands. He knew how perfectly they fit in his own and how they felt on his skin. He knew the strength in them and the gentleness. He knew how calloused they were from the handing of weapons and how warm they were in chilly mornings when he was woken up by their caresses.

“This is worth fighting for,” he murmured more to himself than Alec but his boyfriend’s ears picked it up.

“Definitely.” He sounded so sure, like there wasn’t a single doubt in his mind.

“It’s not going to be easy,” he squeezed Alec’s hands.

“I can take it as long as you can,” the Shadowhunter whispered before bringing their joined hands to his lips and delivering soft kisses to Magnus’s knuckles.

“You’re the first one, you know?” The words slipped out in the safe space they had created after their mutual breakdown.

“First what?” Alec asked with gentle eyes and Magnus was more aware now than ever that he had given all of himself to this man and was completely at his mercy now.

“First to stay and fight for me, not run,” Magnus answered feeling a nostalgic ache in his chest.

Alec shrugged with the answer, “You’re worth it.”

“You are too,” Magnus sighed at the fond smile adoring Alec’s lips.

“Good,” Alec squeezed their hands. “Because we need to figure out what to do next and I’d rather do it at home.”

Magnus couldn’t disagree. He gave a sad smile before brushing a hand over his still damp eyes, careful to salvage as much of his ruined make-up as possible. “Your place?”

“No. Yours,” Alec gave him another fond smile before slipping away to give him some space to work.

 

* * *

 

 

Jace was not in the best of moods. He was tired of all the fuss and questions and couldn’t wait for the night to be over. It didn’t help that Alec had taken off to the Angel knew where and left him without so much as an explanation. By now, most of the staff had already heard from one source or the other that the Head of the Institute had sent them all out demon hunting to spare them from the Clave’s interrogation sessions, and opinions about that were divided. Some were grateful for not having to go through the Clave’s ‘alternative’ questioning methods, while the others feared that the delay had only made it worse.

He eyed the passing group of Shadowhunters carefully, half trying to figure out their opinion on situation, and half trying to look nonchalant as he waited, propped up by a wall near the doors. He’d helped Alec update everyone on the situation and gotten them moving before he’d talked to Izzy about his worries. By the time he’d had the chance and some time to themselves, they’d had to run another group coming back from a mission, and by then, Alec had already disappeared from the Institute. Probably needing some piece from the crazy, he’d gone home.

Izzy had made him wait for both of them to have a shower before heading out to look. Jace was well aware of the perks of long, hot showers and he was no stranger to looking good, but his sister was famous for long showers and a lengthy beauty and hair care regime.

When he finally spotted Izzy across the op center, he pulled back from the wall and waited for her with a raised eyebrow. She was wearing her characteristic red lipstick and high heeled boots, paired up with tight leather pants and sheer black top. Jace couldn’t help but be slightly jealous at how her hair fell in beautiful waves when he missed out on his own hair products in hopes of saving some time.

“You took your time,” he grumbled pulling on his jacket and heading for the door.

“The price of beauty,” Izzy smirked brushing her hair back. Jace only rolled his eyes.

“Clary will take care of things while we’re away,” Isabelle explained as she activated her speed rune.

“Good,” Jace following her example. “Because it’s not going to be easy to get Alec to talk.”

“Race you there?” his sister challenged with a sly smirk and before he could even let out a sound she took off.

“Oh you’re on!” he yelled after her, checking on his invisibility rune before following his sister.

It didn’t take long for him to catch up and together, they sped through the streets. The buildings and people around them bled into a single blur as they made their way across the city to Alec’s apartment, only slowing when they reached his building. If Izzy was wearing a proud smirk that she’d reached it a second faster than him, then Jace was completely ignoring it as they made their way up the stairs.

“I knew there was something going on with him,” Izzy sighed. “He’s changed.”

“I know, but…” Jace sighed giving his sister a somber look. “He’s felt happier. Whatever it was that made him feel so… I didn’t want to ruin that.”

“I know,” Isabelle gave an understanding smile. “Even though he refused to tell me the reason for the change.”

“If you could have felt the difference in the bond,” Jace sighed. He remembered the dull gray feeling of a year ago. He had thought that it was normal, that it was just the way it was supposed to feel. He’d thought that it was just the feeling of Alec being Alec.

But he’d been wrong. After getting his own apartment and living alone, Jace had felt sparks of happiness that had caught him off guard. The first time it had happened when he’d been sparring with Hodge, back before they knew of his treachery, he’d been so surprised that he’d lost for the first time in many years.

As Jace concentrated on their bond again, opening himself up to feel the full blow of the other part of himself, he felt that some of the grayness had returned. But there was also a heavy determination and fight pulsing in their bond along with the underlying happiness that was now a near constant feeling.

“I didn’t even notice that he felt so…” Jace’s words trailed off as he struggled to find the words to describe it.

“Miserable?” Izzy offered.

“I guess,” Jace sighed. “Yeah.”

“You know,” Izzy smiled at him sadly as they reached Alec’s hallway. “I was ready to sacrifice being a part of his happiness.” Isabelle pressed her lips together tightly when he looked at her questioningly before explaining. “If it meant seeing him smiling more, I didn’t mind if he kept the reason for it a secret.”

“But it’s more than an empty apartment,” Jace stated before knocking on the door of said apartment.

“Definitely,” Isabelle agreed.

Jace groaned and knocked again when the door didn’t open. He exchanged a slightly worried glance with Izzy when he didn’t hear any sound behind the door even after the second knock.

“I sweat to Angel, if he’s just sleeping in the-”

“Relax,” Izzy nudged him in the ribs. “We’ll just use the key.” Jace grew wide as she pulled out a key from her pocket.

“Where the hell did you get a key to his apartment?”

“I had it made after he moved in,” Izzy shrugged. “For emergencies only.”

“Does Alec know?” He asked but got his answer in the sheepish smile Isabelle gave him.

“Well, I’d say this is definitely an emergency,” Jace smirked.

“I agree,” Izzy laughed unlocking the door and making her way inside. The apartment hadn’t changed much since Jace was there the last time about a month ago. It was still tiny and still lacked a feeling of the owner, though now Jace noticed some seraph blades on the living room table, an extra quiver with arrows leaning against that same table and a cloth. Alec must have been in the middle of cleaning his gear. He also noticed some reports lying on the sofa while Izzy went to investigate the kitchen.

“Alec?” He called out, though he was more than certain that his brother was not in.

“Judging from the leftovers in the fridge, someone had spaghetti for dinner,” Izzy smirked coming into the living room.

“Should I track him?” Jace asked, though he wasn’t really sure it was a good idea.

“Maybe not,” Izzy shook her head, her hair bouncing. “Maybe he just needed to clear his head.”

Jace took one last look around the apartment, disappointed at how quickly his planned failed, “I guess we could just head back.”

“Or…” Izzy came closer and pulled out the photograph Jace had given her earlier. “We could just head to Magnus’ place and ask him about the mystery shadowhunter.”

Jace squinted at his sister’s smug look, “You just want to see if he has anything new he brought back from one of his fashion trips.”

“True,” she shrugged, “but we can also clear this whole thing in a matter of seconds.”

“You really think Bane will tell us who his supposed-to-be lover is if the Clave wants to put that said person on a trial?”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try,” Izzy turned around to head for the exit. “You coming?”

“Fine,” he grumbled. “But when Alec finds out about this I’m blaming you.”

“It’s not like it’s the first time you broke the rules,” Izzy laughed at him where she waited for him in the hallway to lock the door behind him.

“I break them because they’re wrong,” Jace winked at Izzy as she was locking the door. “Or boring.” He grinned suddenly. “Race you there,” he called as he once again activated his speed rune and ran off snickering at Isabelle’s offended yell.  His sister reached him in a matter of seconds but this time, Jace wasn’t going to be even a fraction of a second behind her. She was wearing heels, for Angel’s sake!

He pushed both his rune and his physical ability to the limit rushing forward. As the apartment building of the High warlock of Brooklyn came into sight he threw a look backwards.

Bad idea.

Looking backwards while running at an unnaturally rapid speed was a horrible, horrible idea. One he had thought he learned a long time ago.

Now as he full on collided with the brick wall Jace got a very…painful remainder.

“Oh, you definitely were the first,” Izzy skidded to a halt where he had crumpled to the floor and gave him a hand up.

“Not a word,” he grumbled, getting to his feet. However, seeing the slightly teasing smirk on his sister’s lips he knew there was no way she was letting this go.

“Come on, it’s already late,” Isabelle’s eyes were sparkling with mirth. “I don’t want to get yelled at for disturbing Magnus’ beauty sleep.”

“Yeah, yeah,” he groaned shaking her hand off and making his way past the door man, undetected with his glamour up.

He tried to avoid Izzy’s teasing glances as they made their way up the stairs. He pushed open the black door in his annoyance at his sister forgetting to even knock and made his way inside.

“Bane, we need to talk to you,” he shouted into the empty apartment. Said warlock barreled out into the living room into the hallway, eyes wide. Jace was pretty sure he had never seen the always-composed, ready-for-everything and never-forget-to-wear-unhealthy-amounts-of-glitter warlock look so ragged. He looked almost terrified and Jace couldn’t quite understand it.

“Jace, Isabelle,” he breathed out. “How can I help?”

“We wanted to ask about this,” Isabelle immediately pulled out their copy of the picture and handed it to Magnus.

The warlock’s features turned from startled and worried to shielded and almost harsh.

“What about this?” His tone was still sweet but Jace heard the hard undertone in it. His suspicions were right. There was no way Magnus would tell them who his lover is.

“We just need the name of the other person, Magnus,” Isabelle tried to appease him.

“For what?” Magnus growled. He didn’t even try to hide the displeasure anymore. “So you can punish them?”

“You’ve heard?” Jace raised his eyebrows. He had hoped they could get the name and knew it would have been much easier if the warlock didn’t know about the Clave’s new order. “How?”

“I’m the High Warlock of Brooklyn, I have my sources, Shadowhunter,” he stepped back into his lounge to pour himself a drink and then crossed his arms over his chest after taking a sip. His gaze met theirs as they followed him into the apartment. “You must have used too much bleach last time you did your hair, Blondie, if you think I would subject my lover to Clave’s outrageous rules.”

“Magnus, we just want to help,” Izzy tried to explain. “Our brother is taking a huge risk for both the Shadowhunter in the picture and you. We’re worried.”

A flash of pain passed his features before Magnus schooled them again, “I’m sure the Head of the Institute can take care of himself.”

Izzy recoiled at the dismissal and Jace felt anger flare up in his chest.

“He’s doing this because you’re our friend,” Jace growled. “It’s your fault. The least you can do is help him. Help us.”

“We promise to protect you lover,” Izzy looked at him pleadingly.

“Against the Clave?” Magnus spat in disdain. “I think I have better chances at that on my own. Now leave.”

“Magnus,” Izzy didn’t give in.

“I said LEAVE,” Magnus raised his voice, his fingers lighting up in blue. Anger swept through Jace when he saw Isabelle’s flinch. He was well aware how close Isabelle and Magnus had gotten over the many assignments when they needed Magnus’ help. He understood if the warlock was reluctant to help, but nobody had the right to raise their voice at his sister. Nobody.

“Now listen, you-” He started forward before a loud, booming voice halted him in his tracks.

“STOP!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn't do this alone. I big thank you to shiny_starlight for being such a wonderful beta.


	4. The Statement

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is as much of surprise to me as it is to all of you. After reading all of the wonderful comments I couldn't ignore my inspiration. I do, however, have to warn you that there's probably going to be a 2 week pause in order for me to update my other works.

Alec was feeling the tension slowly seep out of his bones with each caress of Magnus’ fingers on his chest. However, the slow, gentle sweeps did little to ease the underlying worry that bubbled in the back of his head. He knew that their fight was just about to begin, and that he needed to be strong. But why did he feel so exhausted already?

He snuck a peek down at Magnus who had laid his head down on his chest and was drawing shapes known only to him in gentle patterns on Alec’s shirt. He had this blissful, calming smile adorning his lips as if he lived for the moments where they could just lie in bed with him listening to Alec’s heartbeat. Alec’s gaze shifted to the bedroom door, squinting in annoyance at them. As far as Alec was concerned, their bedroom was a safe zone, and beyond those doors, their world was ready to crumble to dust. He squeezed Magnus protectively against his side at the thought.

“You’re doing it again,” Magnus sighed before pressing a kiss over his heart and propping himself up so he could meet Alec’s eyes.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, pulling his warlock in for a serene kiss, his hands unconsciously bunching in Magnus’ silk shirt. In response, Magnus shifted and brought one of his legs across Alec’s hips, settling into his lap. Alec’s hands made their way to his hips, enjoying the familiar curves under his palms.

Magnus soft golden eyes focused on his hair where he brushed a few strands off his eyes before settling his hands on Alec’s cheeks.

“We’re going to be alright,” he murmured softly, but Alec could still hear the underlying conviction in his tone. “You have to believe that, or this won’t work.”

“Okay,” he swallowed, trying to nod as much as he could in his lover’s grasp. “Okay.”

“Okay,” Magnus smiled leaning in for a kiss.

God, he loved this man.

Alec leaned forward in the sweet anticipation of their lips meeting in a warm embrace. But before he managed to even touch Magnus’ lips, he felt his lover freeze under his touch. He pulled back with a worried look as his warlock turned his head sideways in confusion and slightly inclined as if he was listening to something.

“Magnus?”

But Magnus didn’t move a muscle. In fact, it looked to Alec as if he hadn’t even heard his call, which really did little to ease his worry. Magnus always heard him, sometimes even across crowded and busy streets. “I will always hear you, my Angel,” he’d said more than once, but now he didn’t even register Alec’s presence, despite their close proximity.  

“Magnus, what is it?” he asked again, grasping onto Magnus’s arm where they still held his face. Magnus blinked and turned his head slightly to focus on Alec’s face, finally facing him again, though he still looked distracted and slightly frustrated.

“Someone’s in your apartment.”

“What?” Alec cried out trying to untangle himself from his boyfriend and get out of bed. The panic in his voice seemed to bring Magnus out of his fugue state, because even though he’d scooted sideways to give Alec some room, he’d also grabbed onto his shoulder as Alec was about to leave the bed.

“Alexander, calm down,” Magnus pleaded. “I think it’s friendly.”

“How do you know? It could be the Clave. Oh Angel, what if they find something of yours?” He gasped, agitation and a slight hint of fear seeping into his tone.

“Calm down, dear,” Magnus shifted in bed. He kept his arm on Alec’s shoulder to keep him seated while got out of bed and kneeled on front of him, clasping their hands together and dropping a gentle kiss onto Alec’s knuckles. “I designed the wards around your apartment to let me know if someone tried to enter with malicious intent. Also, even if they were looking for it, they wouldn’t find a single trace of me there,” the warlock explained with confidence. “I’ve gotten rather good at getting rid of any evidence of my fabulous self from your apartment over the last year. Believe me, I took care of everything before I left this morning.”

Alec searched his boyfriend’s features for any lies before a humorless laugh escaped his lips. “That sounds so pathetic.”

“If that’s the price for your love, then I’m willing to pay it,” Magnus shrugged so nonchalantly that Alec couldn’t help but brush a thumb over his lover’s cheekbone.

“I love you,” he sighed wistfully.

“I love you too, Alexander,” Magnus answered, leaning into his palm before getting up and taking snuggling up next to him on the bed. “Let’s see who your unannounced visitor was.”

Alec turned to face him with one leg hanging off the edge of the bed and watched in curiosity as Magnus closed his eyes in concentration. Minutes ticked by as the warlock remained silent and Alec watched in awe as soft blue sparks appeared and disappeared around Magnus in waves. Magnus’ frown deepened in confusion before it let up and Magnus opened his golden eyes again.

“Okay, if I have to make a guess I’d say your siblings paid you a visit.”

“Jace and Izzy?” Alec frowned. “How do you know?”

“First of all, their aura’s are very similar to yours”, Magnus smiled softly at him before it turned into a smirk. “And second of all, they used a key.”

“They don’t have a key to my apartment,” Alec argued.

“Darling, I’ve spent enough quality time with you sister to know she most definitely would have made herself a spare key to your apartment.”

Magnus gave him a teasing smile, and Alec pondered on the idea for a moment before a fond smile graced his lips. “Okay, that does sound a lot like Izzy.”

“Besides, if we want to know for sure, we can always just look at the camera to see if I was right,” Magnus said casually. “I can only feel the auras and whether or not it was a forced entry the wards. The camera will show us exactly who it was.”

“Camera?” Alec frowned. “What camera?”

Magnus froze, eyes widening in realization before he looked down at his lap in embarrassment.

“Magnus?” Alec squinted at his boyfriend when he failed to get an answer. Long, slow heartbeats ticked by before Magnus looked up at him through his lashes.

“Fine,” Magnus raised his head with a bashful look on his face. “I may have given into my… slightly paranoid tendencies… and put a glamoured CCTV camera in your hallway.”

Alec blinked at his boyfriend in bewilderment.

“Would you please say something?” Magnus groaned when Alec continued blinking at him in confusion for a full minute. “Are you angry?” he asked, dreading the answer.

“Not really, no,” Alec replied after a further few moments pause. “But I do want to know why you thought it necessary.”

Magnus looked at him as if he was debating whether he could get away with not answering, but the look in Alec’s eye persuaded him otherwise. He sighed and settled back against the headboard, not meeting Alec’s eyes.

“Remember that night when Jace got drunk after finding out Clary is his sister and he tried to break down your door in the middle of the night?” Magnus fiddled with the ring with his initials on it.

“Yeah, I thought I was getting robbed,” Alec laughed at the memory. He was furious at the time, but now it all seemed so far away in the past.

“Well, I thought you were about to get killed,” Magnus snapped, annoyed at Alec’s dismissive attitude. “My wards can’t really tell me much detail when there’s a drunk person trying to get through them. All I knew was that someone was trying to force their way into your apartment. They were so full of pain, and anger, and disgust and all that other crap your _Parabatai_ was going through, and they were trying to break their way in!”

 “You barreled through my door the next night as if a hoard of demons were chasing you,” Alec recalled, taking Magnus’ hands and stroking them soothingly. “You were supposed to be away for a week in China, and yet, there you were.”

“I had exhausted my magic on the initial trip and the spells my client wanted and when I tried to open a portal that night, I fainted. I couldn’t get back to you until the next day,” Magnus shook his head at the haunting memory. “It was horrible,” he choked out.

Alec had had no idea that Magnus had been so worried. He was at a loss for words, so he did the only thing he could think of. He gathered his boyfriend in his arms and whispered ‘I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I had no idea’ over and over again. He wished he could express himself as eloquently as Magnus could, but the words always refused to come. He was left with simple words that failed to express half of what he was really feeling, so he poured all his love and care into the gentle way he cradled Magnus in his arms, and the feather light kisses he placed on his temple.  

Magnus didn’t cry in his arms; they had spent their daily quota of tears in the warehouse but Alec held him until his lover stopped trembling from the memory and then whispered against his hair, “I think it’s a pretty good reason for getting a surveillance camera.”

“I think so too,” he answered in an almost genuine laugh and pulled back. Alec searched his boyfriend's eyes for any sign of distress but the warlock seemed to have pushed the memory to the back of his mind and took a deep breath. “We should look at the tape. See if I’m right.”

“Yeah,” Alec agreed getting to his feet and pulling his boyfriend up when a loud bang in the apartment made them both freeze.

“Bane, we need to talk to you!” The voice echoed through the apartment from the entryway and they looked at each other in mutual panic.

“Jace,” Alec whispered in horror; Magnus’ own expression pretty much mirroring what he felt.

“Stay here,” the warlock ordered under his breath before rushing out into the living room before Alec even had the chance to argue.

“Shit, shit, shit,” Alec swore, pacing the room. He felt panic creep up his chest and he pressed his hand over the mouth to keep as silent as possible. It felt like his heart was beating too loudly and the flow of blood in his veins could be heard from a mile away.

He heard Magnus coolly greet both Jace and Isabelle and cursed his siblings timing. He crept closer to the door to hear their conversation and barely suppressed the annoyed growl when they asked Magnus about his lover. He had told them not to involve Magnus into the matter. He had specifically ordered them not to question the warlock.

Then again, his siblings rarely listened when they had their minds set on to something.

“I’m sure the Head of the Institute can take care of himself,” he heard Magnus say in a cold, confident tone and pulled his face in a grimace knowing his siblings well enough to prepare for what was about to come next.

His heart squeezed painfully in his chest at the way Jace immediately leapt to his defense, while his sister was pleading for Magnus’ help, promising to protect his lover. If only she knew that her brother was the same person she promising to protect. He quietly rested his head against the doorframe, listening to the fight slowly getting more and more heated. They were all trying to protect him. The people he loved the most in the world were fighting each other in order to protect Alec.

“…LEAVE,” Alec flinched at Magnus’ raised voice, feeling sick to his soul at what was happening on the other side of the door. That was his family, his kin, fighting with the person Alec loved most in the world. It was not possible to choose a side. He was physically unable to listen anymore as his loved ones tore each other to pieces in the name of protecting him.

He had to stop it.

He had to put an end to it.

He loved them. He loved them all.

He didn’t allow himself a moment to think or to second guess his decision as he pulled back the door and stepped outside with a harsh yell.

“STOP!”

The moment the single world left his lips, he froze. What had he just done? The danger and stupidity of his decision hit him full force when all eyes turned to him, but he banished the thought as quickly as he’d made the decision to act. It was the right thing to do. Stupid didn’t always mean wrong.

He was met with three faces looking at him like they just saw a ghost. Isabelle and Jace both had ridiculously similar looks of shock written all over their faces and Alec would have laughed if not for the severity of the situation. However, any idea of humor died out as he saw Magnus’ initial look of surprise morph into anguish.

“Alexander, what-” he whispered as the martini glass he was holding slipped from his fingers and shattered as it hit the hardwood floors the rugs rested on. “Shit!” Magnus exclaimed, kneeling down to the broken glass with such a look of anguish, one would think it was a treasured heirloom, or his favorite glass in the world.

“Alexander, what…” the warlock tried to ask again as he picked up the pieces and looked up at him in alarm, but he quickly pulled back his hand as he carelessly pressed down on the edge of the glass. Magnus dropped the now bloody shard back on the floor and squeezed the hand in a fist before pressing it against his forehead in an effort to collect himself.

Alec was pulled from his own stupor into action as he saw blood dripping through the fingers, “Let me see!”

He knelt down in front of Magnus, gently pulling the fist from his forehead where it had left a bloody smear and opened the fingers to see the cut.

“Alexander, what have you done?” Magnus got out in shaky breaths but Alec just shook his head and threw an apologetic look sideways at his stunned siblings.

“It’s not too deep, you should be more careful,” he sighed. “Can you heal it?”

“Uhh, yes,” Magnus nodded his head but as he tried to summon his magic, the blue sparks dissolved into mist and disappeared. Alec looked at the warlock in worry who laughed miserably before shaking his head, “It’s a bit hard to concentrate.”

“It’s okay. I’ll get a bandage until you calm down,” he offered in apology, standing and bringing Magnus with him with a safe hold on the warlock’s elbows.

“Alec, what the hell?” Jace exclaimed but Alec couldn’t offer him an explanation at right this moment.

“Can you… can you please just sit down?” He inclined his head towards the couch and thank the Angel for his sister because she pulled the slightly annoyed Jace with her and sat him down. Alec did the same with Magnus, sitting him down in the chair opposite the couch, before grabbing the bandages and disinfectant from the bathroom.

His heart was hammering.

He had completely shocked Magnus and he had to explain things to his siblings but it all seemed so hard now. He couldn’t even begin to figure out where to start. He tried to focus on Magnus’ palm at the moment, sending another apologetic look to his siblings as he entered the living room and knelt down to take Magnus’ hand in his.

He cleaned the long, ugly wound in silence before applying a bandage to it, throwing a worried glance every now at then at Magnus’ confused expression. He looked so deep in though, eyes flickering from Alec’s face to the painting on the wall behind the couch Jace and Izzy were sitting on. Alec couldn’t help but notice how his boyfriend tried to avoid looking at his siblings.

Alec had to admit he had kind of jumped the gun with things. Neither of them were in the right state of mind to suddenly come clean about their relationship to his siblings.

“We got blood on the carpet,” Magnus finally spoke softly, and Alec threw a disbelieving look at the carpet where there indeed were droplets of blood.

“You’ll clean that up later,” he answered casually and hesitated a little, throwing a hesitant glance at his siblings, before kissing his open palm right over the bandage covered wound. Magnus’ expression was one of pure confusion, and Alec gave him a bittersweet smile of encouragement.

“It’s okay.”

He faced his siblings as he sat down in the other chair a bit disappointed at losing the body contact with Magnus but also relieved at being able to confront his sibling on his own. He looked down on his lap trying to figure out how to start this.

“You’re in love,” Izzy broke the uncomfortable silence which had settled over them and Alec looked up at her in bewilderment. It was a simple statement but it was true and it also brought so many emotions along with it.

He searched her face for anger or betrayal; anything to tell him his sister hated him but only found a small, sad smile lifting her lips upward.

“I am,” he confessed on a sob and the next moment his sister was out of her seat and he was enveloped in a warm hug. The relief flooding his every sense was so overwhelming he grabbed at his sister like she was an anchor in the sea of emotions. The words he’d suppressed for too long and the feelings he’d kept hidden too deep in his heart finally broke free with an overwhelming force, knocking him off his path.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered where he had hidden his face in her hair.

“It’s okay, brother,” Izzy tightened her embrace. “It’s okay.”

“You should be mad,” he tried to argue.

“I’m not,” Isabelle pulled back and Alec saw the tears smudging her make-up a bit. “I’m a bit hurt though.”

“I’m sorry,” he repeated. It didn’t seem like it would be enough.

“You know what, big brother?” she pulled back with a watery smile. “I’ll forgive you if you tell me how this happened. I feel there’s a story of the century behind this.”

Alec couldn’t hold back the slightly disbelieving smile and turned to Magnus who was looking at them with a fond smile before answering his sister, “I can do that.”

“I’m going to have so many questions,” she teased and Alec had never loved his sister more than at that exact moment.

“That’s it?” Jace’s harsh tone interrupted his reply to Isabelle. Facing his _parabatai,_ he felt his stomach drop at the pain and animosity he saw there.

“Jace,” Isabelle’s tone held a definite note of warning.

Jace ignored the danger and stood up in flaring anger before throwing a look so full of betrayal at Alec that he felt sick.

“That’s it? We’re supposed to forgive you now?”

Alec squeezed his eyes shut for a moment. He had been dreading this moment from the beginning.

“How long has this been a thing?” his brother motioned between Alec and Magnus. The warlock sat up straighter, eyeing Jace with a displeased frown.

Jace’s harsh tone put a stop to any relief Alec had been feeling.

“A year,” he admitted in defeat.

“A damn year?” Jace gasped before raising his voice in a yell. “For a whole god forsaken year you couldn’t tell me, your _parabatai_ , that you were sleeping with Magnus Bane?”

“Hey!” Alec protested, jumping to his feet. He was not going to let Jace speak about the love of his life like some hooker, no matter how much it hurt to fight right now. He was about to shoot back with some pointed, reckless and no doubt hurtful comment when Magnus grabbed his arm and gave a warning squeeze. He looked briefly at his lover’s steady eyes before taking a deep breath. He tried again, hoping to make his brother understand, “There was never the right time.”

“Never the right time?” Jace laughed mockingly. “Or you just couldn’t trust your own brother?”

“Of course I trust you!”

“Really? How much?” Alec was well aware Jace was challenging him. “Not enough to tell me about him!” Jace pointed at Magnus who looked close to snarling at Jace.

Alec raised a hand to keep his boyfriend from interrupting.

“I had to keep him safe!” Alec tried to reason with Jace.

“And you think I couldn’t help with that?” his brother snarled.

“Jace, just-” Isabelle tried to calm their brother down.

 

“You may be okay with this Iz, but I’m not,” he interrupted Isabelle before turning back to Alec. This time, when Jace spoke, there was no anger in his voice, just bone deep exhaustion and weariness. “By the Angel, Alec, we are supposed to always have each other’s backs.”

And though Alec was glad the shouting match was over, this felt so much worse when Jace let his hurt seep into his voice.

“I know, but-”

“Do you really think that I wouldn’t give my life to protect you?”

“I know, Jace, but-” Alec cried out hoping Jace would let him finish.

“I felt how happy he made.” The anger was gone from his face and tone, but the remaining hurt was tearing Alec’s heart in half. “I felt through the bond,” Jace touched their rune on his hip. “You felt… good. He made you feel… alive and I didn’t know that but I still liked the feeling of it.”

“Jace, please!” Alec was terrified of where this conversation was heading but he didn’t stop.

“You know what?” Jace gave him a wistful smile before looking questioningly at Magnus; like he was piecing together a puzzle.

“Jace,” Alec breathed out in prayer: A prayer for everything and anything to just make this stop.

“If you had trusted me, I would have protected him with my life,” he said before turning around.

In stunned silence Alec watched his brother leave and he cursed the sudden stop of thoughts in his head.

“Jace!” he called after his brother when he heard the door slam shut and was about to run after him when a warm comforting hand grabbed his arm. He started to protest, but the words died in his throat when he heard Magnus’ soft voice.

“Let me,” Magnus offered, running a soothing trail down his arm before letting go and following Jace out.

“But-”

“Let him,” Isabelle rounded him and guided him backwards into the chair. He squeezed his eyes shut hearing the door slam shut for the second time.

As he felt sharp betrayal spark in his _parabatai_ rune he groaned in his hands, “What have I done?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? Who's in the right about this? Alec or Jace?
> 
>  
> 
> As usual, a thank you to shiny_starlight for being my beta.


	5. The Truth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look who's back? Ugh, my life's a rollercoaster at the moment. I'm doing an exchange semester in the US, had a surgery two months ago and we still have to wait 2 MONTHS for the season 3. -_- Anyway...enjoy!
> 
> Also, this chapter was brought to you with the help of my wonderful beta - shiny_starlight!!!!

Magnus could not believe this. In all his 400 years, he had never seen a generation of shadowhunters more prone for drama than the current one. He’s trying to prevent a maniac from killing the whole Downworld, trying to negotiate with the Fairy Queen who seemed too preoccupied with gossip, and Clave has decided to put the cherry on the cake that was his life by issuing an order to arrest his lover.

He groaned. His lover and his family were a whole new definition of drama.

Magnus wasn’t sure what changed to make his darling Alexander come out to his family after a year of keeping their relationship a secret, but he could have used a prior warning. Maybe then they would have come up with a plan that didn’t involve him chasing said family down a hallway.

“Speed rune be damned,” he groaned rushing down the hallway after the blond-haired idiot. As the golden head disappeared behind the stairway door he groaned, “That’s it.”

He flicked his wrist to summon the familiar golden swirling mass of energy before he stepped through the portal and into the dark alley behind his apartment building. Rounding the corner, he came to the front of his building just as the fuming shadowhunter threw open the door.

“JACE,” he yelled and the man immediately froze in his tracks.

The Shadowhunter threw a startled look at him before the surprise morphed into a grimace and he turned to leave.

“You take another step, young man, and I’ll turn you into a duck!” Magnus was tired of playing chase, and if that meant resorting to threats, then so be it. Besides, Jace’s horrified expression was so worth it. He made his way closer to his lover’s brother, pleased to see he had abandoned his idea to escape.

“Alec told you,” he grumbled in annoyance and Magnus could only smirk.

“Yes, he did.”

“Traitor,” Jace growled.

Magnus frowned at the comment and clenched his fists to prevent the sparks of annoyance from escaping.

“The only traitor here is you,” he shot back and squared his shoulders already prepared for the storm that was about to come his way.

“Me?” he spurted. “I’m not the one who was secretly hiding a lover. Besides,” Magnus squinted at Jace’s challenging tone, already having a bad feeling for what was going to follow, “aren’t you too proud to be someone’s dirty secret?”

He was right.  

It was barely a fraction of second before he snapped his fingers and Jace was pinned to the nearest wall. He frowned at Jace, fingers twitching and increasing the pressure to keep him in place. It wasn’t enough for it to be painful, but the pressure was _just_ enough for Jace to feel uncomfortable.

“Watch your mouth, Shadowhunter,” Magnus growled staring into Jace’s eyes which were blown wide in surprise. “There is nothing dirty in what Alec and I have. Pull your head out of your ass and think!”

“I am thinking,” Jace wheezed out where his airways were slightly squeezed. “I’m thinking that my brother was lying to me for a whole God-forsaken year. We’re supposed to trust each other, have each other’s backs.”

“Trust? Have each other’s backs?” Magnus mocked, barely keeping his anger in check at the arrogance in front of him. “Where was the trust when he begged you to slow down, to think before rushing into yet another unsanctioned mission with Clary? Where were you back when your sister was put on a trail and Alexander begged me to defend her?”

“I was trying to stop Valentine,” Jace groaned out, turning slightly pale from the lack of oxygen. Okay, maybe Magnus wasn’t so great at reigning in his annoyance.

“And Alexander was trying to protect his family!” Magnus growled, releasing his hold on his love’s _parabatai_ and stepped back, trying to clear his mind before speaking again. “He feared that his relationship with me would ruin what was left of Lightwood’s honor and though it hurt me I agreed. You know why?”

When Jace just stared at him in annoyance Magnus huffed, putting hands on his hips.

“Because I love him. And that was enough for me sacrifice a bit of my happiness to at least lighten his everyday struggle.”

Though Magnus didn’t like to admit it, he knew the blond Shadowhunter was a bright man. He could do with less ego, but on the whole, Jace was trustworthy and loyal. So he wasn’t surprised when his words took effect and he saw the fight leave Jace’s shoulders. It didn’t mean he would stop though.

“And when you went along with Valentine, I stood on the sidelines watching as he put his every breath into finding you and almost lost his life because of you. Do you think I don’t want to hold his hand in public or be allowed to offer him comfort? Guess what?” he snapped at the blond man. “I deal with that!”

“Magnus,” Jace huffed as if trying to appease him, but Magnus was too wired up to stop now. He didn’t even fully understand why he was telling Jace all this. If Magnus was thinking rationally, he’d probably realize that it had been bothering him for a while, and it had been building up in his mind, just waiting for the snap and he let it all out.

Well, call this the snap.

“And now I can’t even be seen together with him because we’re on the brink of a war and we’re supposed to hate each other. To top it off, the Clave wants to punish him for loving me! For being the best thing that has ever happened in my entire life,” he was aware of his own yelling, of laying out all his frustrations on Jace, but he also found out that he had quite a lot he wanted to say.

“So while your brother and _parabatai_ is trying to prevent a war at the same time as maintaining even a tiny shred of happiness, I suggest you support him! I suggest you get out of whatever self-pity gutter you’ve thrown yourself into and help him! Because if you’re going to be the reason he loses any more of those carefree smiles, I will make your life a hell like you’ve never seen before.” His gaze bore into Jace’s mismatched eyes, chest heaving from the overwhelming emotion.

The Shadowhunter was looking at him wide-eyed and clearly surprised so it took him a moment to come up with a response.

“You’re so gone for him,” Jace finally huffed out a fond breath and all the fight seeped out of Magnus’ bones at the teasing smirk on Jace’s face. Teasing was good. It meant he had somehow managed to get through Jace’s anger.

He regarded him with a raised eyebrow before admitting, “I believe that we can make each other very happy if we could just get out of this war.”

Jace hummed in agreement.

“I guess a thank you is in order,” Jace inclined his head at him and Magnus reeled back in surprise.

“For what? Yelling at you?” he grimaced. “If so, you may need to see a specialist.”

“Angel, no,” Jace groaned. “For making him happier.”

Though still thrown off at the sudden change of attitude, Magnus smirked at the comment, “I can assure you, it’s a mutual pleasure.”

“Just please no sex comments, he’s still my brother,” Jace groaned.

“So, you’re good?” Magnus returned to a more serious note.

“I’m better,” Jace nodded. “I know I was a jerk.”

“Yes, you were.”

“But I can’t go back up yet,” Jace turned away, and if Magnus didn’t know better, he’d think a shadow of shame darkened the man’s features.

“I can work with that,” Magnus hummed, raising his head to where his loft was supposed to be. He couldn’t see it from this angle but just the idea of Alexander safe in his home was heartwarming. “As long as you both work through this. Things are shifting. Alexander is going to need all the support he can get.”

“And you?” Jace turned back to face him, his face grim with suspicion. “If shit hits the fan, who is to say you won’t take the easy way out and break my brother’s heart in the process?”

Magnus almost pinned Jace back to the wall for such a claim. He loved Alexander like he had never loved anything or anybody else. He was so gone for the man, it felt like a physical impossibility to walk away from his lover. The droopy smiles, the shy kisses, the warm embraces and soft “I love you’s” – Magnus was too selfish to let that go. He wanted everything Alexander was willing to give. Whether Alexander knew it or not, he was the center of Magnus’ world and even one day without seeing him made Magnus feel cold and lost.

“I won’t allow that to happen,” he ended up simply responding. They’ve held each other through so many dark nights and, though every day felt uncertain and dangerous, Magnus had never felt so safe with anyone as he felt with Alec. He looked down at his bandaged palm, enjoying the warm wave of love it brought, remembering how carefully Alec had cradled it.

Jace was looking at him in suspicion but it wasn’t Jace he had to prove his loyalty to. It was a dark-haired beauty with hazel eyes currently waiting in his living room and Magnus suddenly found that he didn’t enjoy the blonde’s company as much anymore.

“Do you need a portal?” he ended up offering as they were already stretching out their parting and the cool night air was starting to numb his nose.

“Nah, I’ll walk,” Jace pulled himself out of his daydreaming. It looked like he wanted to say something more, but the words failed him. In the end he just stuffed his hands into the pockets of his jacket and exited the alley. “Tell Alec I’ll see him tomorrow.”

“You better,” Magnus warned.

“Goodnight, Magnus,” Jace chuckled before heading down the sidewalk.

Magnus blinked at the casual parting. He shook his head before making his own way upstairs, this time taking the stairs, deciding that time was necessary to process his talk with Jace before he met Alec.

He couldn’t deny that finally not having to hide their relationship from Alec’s siblings was a relief but it didn’t ease the worry that seemed to have taken a permanent residence in his heart. In their entire relationship, there had never been such a risk of them being discovered. If the Clave started to investigate and pour their resources into this, Magnus wasn’t sure they could keep going like they had. And that was even with Alec’s siblings on their side.

A dark thought flickered in his mind and startled he looked down at his hands where red glimmers of light sparked out violently. No, separating from his Alexander was not an option. Even his magic seemed opposed.

His thoughts kept wandering until he reached his apartment door and he took a deep breath. It was ridiculous, he knew, being nervous about opening his own front door. But he couldn’t help it. He didn’t know what had happened with Alec and Izzy during his one to one with Jace.

Opening the wooden door, he huffed at the sight. Alexander was pacing back and forth, and froze in place upon his entrance. Magnus winced as Alec’s hopeful look shattered into misery and he quickly made his way over. He spared a quick, heartbroken glance at Izzy who was standing in the entryway to his kitchen nursing a cup of tea.

“He left?” Alec asked, his voice barely above a whisper. He sounded broken and Magnus could feel his own heart echo the pain he saw in his lover’s eyes.

“For now,” he nodded, grasping the Shadowhunter’s hands and giving them a comforting squeeze. “He said he’ll see you tomorrow.”

That seemed to shock the younger man. His eyes grew big and hopeful before his face features morphed into confusion.

“He’s not angry?”

“Darling, he was never angry. Just confused,” he moved his right hand to cup Alec’s face and silently celebrated the fact how the shadowhunter leaned into the touch. “He just needs some time to think.”

“How did you do it?” Alec asked in astonishment and Magnus couldn’t help but look slightly sheepish.

“There may have been violence involved,” he shrugged and then laughed as Alec gave him a blank look.

“Worry not, my heart,” he brushed his thumb along the soft skin under Alec’s eye. “The only thing bruised is your _parabatai’s_ ego.”

They were disturbed from their intimate moment by a groan and Magnus blinked remembering that Isabelle was still in the room with them.

“How did I not see this?” she was eyeing them with a confused look. “I always knew you would be perfect together. It’s just that you are always so…” she regarded Alec with a frustrated look.

“Repressed?” Magnus supplied with a smirk as his hand curled around Alec’s waist. He chuckled at the low growl from his shadowhunter.

“Yes! Exactly!” Izzy beamed.

“Izzy, I…” Alec opened his mouth to say something that like an apology judging from his tone but his sister cut him off before he could get more than a few words out.

“You have nothing to apologize, brother,” she explained as she moved forward, and Magnus couldn’t help his tender smile as Alec was enveloped in her hug.  He did notice though that his lover looked slightly dazed and apparently, he wasn’t the only one because Isabelle turned to him next and regarded him with a raised eyebrow.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m happy for you two and you’re my friend, Magnus, but if you hurt my brother…”

“Nobody will find my remains,” he raised his hands in defeat. “I know, dear Isabelle.”

“Great, I better leave you to it then,” she headed for the door but stopped and turned around before stepping through. “Magnus?”

“Yes?”

“I believe a shopping trip to Paris should be a start if you want to make amends,” she winked before the door closed behind her and Magnus turned to face Alec as he groaned.

“You do realize that’s basically a code for an integration?”

“I am aware,” he chuckled. “On the other hand, I will finally be able to gush about you to someone!” he teased, wrapping his arms around Alec’s waist and pulling him closer.

“That’s my little sister, Magnus,” Alec growled but Magnus had long since learned how to deal with his pouty boyfriend and leaned up to give a brief kiss to those full lips.

“I promise to keep it PG,” he whispered and earned himself a groan.

He moved his hands against the younger man’s back and frowned feeling the muscles tense and almost rock solid.

“Alexander?” he pried his lover’s head away from where Alec had settled it in the crook of his shoulder. “Are you okay?”

The man’s brown soft eyes looked around the room for a moment, hesitating at the door longer than anywhere else before settling back on him.

“Somebody knows,” he spoke barely above a whisper. A look in his eyes reminding Magnus of a startled animal.

“And how does that make you feel?”

Alec frowned. His gaze got distant for a while, but Magnus waited patiently. Sometimes his younger lover needed a moment to stop and regard his own emotions.

“It feels…” his voice faded as he scrunched up his forehead and Magnus couldn’t help the fond huff.

“Freeing?” he finally offered when the man seemed to get more confused by the second.

Alec chuckled, his eyes lighting up in mirth.

“I was going to go with ‘’vulnerable’ but, yeah, that too.”

“I think I need a cuddle after all this mess,” Magnus looked up at the dark-haired man with raised eyebrows. Or a drink. But he didn’t say that to Alec. It didn’t matter anyway. He’d take a cuddle with his boyfriend over a drink anytime of the day. Sometimes both, but it was getting late and the thought of drifting off to sleep with Alexander’s warm body against him was getting more compelling by the second.

“I can do that,” Alec leaned down to press his lips firmly against his.

“Correction,” he laughed as Alec pulled away and took him by his hand to lead them to the bedroom. “I need cuddles AND kisses.”

“As you wish,” Alec chuckled, and Magnus went limp and allowed Alec to drag him down onto the bed. It only took a slight shuffling and maneuvering, but soon the stars and all body parts were aligned and they were wrapped up in each other as much as physically possible. Magnus lay on his back, reclining against the numerous pillows on his bed, with Alec hovering over him, leaning in with an adoring look on his face.

“What?” he huffed when the silly look remained.

“Nothing,” Alec huffed as he caged him in with elbows on each side of his head and a hand carding through Magnus’ black locks. “I love you.”

“Very good,” Magnus couldn’t help to tease slightly. “Because I love you too.”

“Good indeed,” Alec murmured as his eyes shifted to Magnus’ lips and the warlock felt fluttering anticipation burn low in his belly. He shifted his hand to pull Alec in by the nape but the Shadowhunter stayed put.

Looking at him.

“Alexander?” he asked tentatively as his lover seemed to lose any sense of time. 

“You’re amazing,” the younger man blinked away his daze and breathed out in what almost seemed like reverence.

But before Magnus could ask what he meant, those pink lips finally descended onto his and any question was left forgotten in favor of enjoying the all-encompassing passion that came with exploring each other and the simple joy of just being able to be together so intimately close. Magnus moaned as Alec shifted to deepen the kiss and he gladly gave him the access he was asking for, both knowing that they were too exhausted to do anything beyond this.

As terrifying as it was, Magnus would give Alec anything he desired.

* * *

He couldn’t stifle his laughter. His Master will be pleased. Now that both Lightwoods knew of the horrible shame Alec Lightwood had brought upon their family’s name it will be almost too easy to take them all down.

The Witch’s spell had worked. The High Warlock hadn’t even felt his presence in the alley. He looked up toward the upper levels of the building in sweet satisfaction. This was it. The two men who, in their blissful ignorance, were probably sleeping will be the breaking point for the war to come. He could almost feel the taste of victory on his tongue.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? Have I earned some comments! I know there's no such thing, but is there too much Malec perhaps? I feel like I sometimes forget about the rest of the characters and give you only the Malec goodness. 
> 
> For those of you who follow "Troubles of the Future", you'll be pleased to know that it should be no longer than a week till the next chapter, a couple of days if you're lucky.


	6. The Parabatai

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, I know, I've been very mean to all of you and it's been a while since there's been an update. It should get better by the middle of the May, then I'll be free from the shackles of my university till September. :D
> 
> As always, hugs to my beta - shiny_starlight!!!
> 
> Here you all go, it gets sappy and scary and sad and steamy(if you wish to avoid this part just skip to the line break, though, honestly, I would still consider it within the limits of M rating so you should all be safe).
> 
> Happy Reading!

Alec woke early. Not his usual early (which usually meant 7 am whenever he spent a night at Magnus’) but the crack-of-dawn early. The sun hadn’t yet reached over the horizon but the sky had started to get tinted in lighters hues of grays and blues. The light was still too weak to disrupt their bubble of peace, so he laid still in their bed with Magnus’ breath fanning over his naked shoulder. He stared up at the ceiling, fingers gently brushing Magnus’ arm where it was lying across Alec’s belly. Every so often, the older man would caress his side, an unconscious move that still didn’t fail to alight a warm light in Alec’s chest.

He wondered what had woken him from a pretty deep sleep, but it didn’t take long to pinpoint.  There was a nervous energy thrumming in his nerves and he was half compelled to look down and check if there weren’t any nervous sparks escaping his body as it did when Magnus was too anxious. It certainly did feel like fireworks were going off under his skin. He recalled the sharp sting of betrayal he had felt from their bond last night but didn’t focus on that memory too long. He knew himself well enough to know that dwelling on that brief sting of betrayal he had felt from Jace last night would lead him down dark paths of guilt and doubt; and as he looked down at his lover, he found that there was nothing for him to feel guilt or doubt about. Yes, maybe he should have trusted his siblings more, but Magnus was worth keeping safe. No matter what.

Instead, he took a deep breath and let his end of the bond expand and open up to receive whatever was coming from the other end of it. He wasn’t surprised to feel it thrumming with energy. Jace was awake. And he was so relieved he didn’t feel the red-hot blaze of anger or the sticky tar-like substance of resentment. Instead, he felt a calm, fresh spring breeze of resolution and even slight impatience coming from it. There was an undertone of guilt but it was hard to discern between his own and Jace’s.

“Ngh,” a groggy voice snapped his attention to the present. “Stop thinking so early in the morning,” Magnus groaned, burrowing further into his shoulder.

“Sorry,” Alec huffed fondly, careful to not speak too loudly and disrupt their morning peace. He pressed a warm kiss to the warlock’s hairline and smiled as the man tightened his hold on him.

He let his gaze linger on his lover - from the golden caramel skin, the dark soft hair, the relaxed muscles, the pink lips parted on an exhale to the overall warmth of his body pressed against his own.

“You’re still thinking,” Magnus mumbled into his shoulder but apparently deemed sleep futile and moved an arm under his body so he could prop himself up and look down at Alec. “What has your mind running 100 miles an hour?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s not that fast,” Alec smiled at his disgruntled lover and reached up to run his thumb over the crease of Magnus’ brow.

Magnus’ eyes briefly flitted to the window before he looked at Alec disapprovingly. At least he tried to. Alec could easily see past the façade. Besides, the crinkling of the warlock’s eyes always betrayed his emotions.

“It’s not even sunrise.”

“I wasn’t sleepy,” Alec defended himself with a lazy shrug of his shoulders.

“I can see that,” Magnus grumbled. “You Shadowhunters and your lack of need for a good eight-hour sleep.”

Alec’s chuckle shook his entire body and the movement made him focus on all the ways Magnus was temptingly pressed against him. Their legs tangled and Magnus’ knee pressing between his own, their hips slightly misaligned but still pressed together, tummies touching and chests brushing whenever one of them inhaled. Needless to say, it sparked a deliciously sweet idea in his mind and he reached out his hand that wasn’t resting on Magnus’ nape to brush it with purpose over his side.

“I can think of a way to pass time,” he smirked with a confidence he would have never associated with himself a year ago.

Magnus’ gaze immediately turned a shade more intense and, though his lips formed into a teasing smirk, Alec noticed a barely there shudder run down his spine.

“Whatever could you mean by that, Alexander?” he blinked in feigned innocence.

Alec felt his heart skip a beat at his full name being whispered in such a lustful tone, but he gathered his wits and despite the blush that he felt starting to appear, he slowly, pressing his palm into Magnus’ sleep warm flesh, glided his hand from Magnus’ nape to his shoulder. He followed an invisible path known only to his own desires down Magnus’ side, past his ribs and hips until it finally settled on his thigh. All the while, he didn’t let his gaze stray from Magnus’ golden orbs and he basked in the way the warlock’s breath hitched as he grabbed the muscular thigh and guided it over his hip so Magnus ended up straddling him and he could feel the evidence of his lover’s arousal against his own bulge.

“Are you gonna make me do all the work?” Magnus laughed, though his eyes remained dark with lust and he purposely ground his hips into Alec’s.

His next words didn’t slip past his lips as effortlessly as he would have liked and he could feel the heat of his blush as he drew Magnus closer so he could rasp in his ear.

“I want to see you ride me. I want to see you breathless and panting and glowing like the god you are when you’re on top of me.” He had no idea where this eloquence came from but it was well worth it to see Magnus’ eyes widen, his breath catch in his throat till it was let out in a low whine and his hips twitch against Alec’s.

He could barely appreciate the effect he had on his lover before two strong hands cupped his face and Magnus leaned down to devour his mouth with lips, teeth, and tongue.

Whatever thoughts had lingered in his brain disappeared and he focused all that he was on the man currently on top of him and kissing him like he was the last drop of water on the planet.

He did get his wish. After taking his time to rediscover every inch of Magnus’ body and generously prepping him, he got to see Magnus in genuine, unrestrained throes of passion as the first solid rays of sun hit his sweat clad skin. The warm sunlight illuminated his pink kiss-bitten lips, wove golden threads in his messy ruffled hair and finally dimmed in comparison to the golden orbs that were fixated on Alec as he took his pleasure and gave it back tenfold.

Not for the first time, Alec thought he would shatter into million pieces as he finally reached his peak. But afterwards, when he got to hold a panting Magnus as he shuddered through the last bits of his own pleasure, he had never felt more whole and more at peace.

The last thought in his mind as he allowed himself to slip back into a slumber was that now he had more help in protecting the treasure lying peacefully in his arms.

* * *

 

As he entered the Institute and steeled himself for work, he pushed back the thoughts of the morning he got to spend with Magnus and put on a face of a leader. It wasn’t really a mask. He didn’t have to fake how much he cared about his job, but he didn’t reveal everything of himself either. He chose to show only those parts of himself that mattered and, though he despised the fact that he had to hide his own personal happiness (and worry, recently as well), it wasn’t a fundamental part of his job as the Head so he buried that away for moments when there were no prying eyes.

“Lightwood,” a Shadowhunter at the entrance of ops room greeted him and he inclined his head in response. There were some curious glances being thrown his way and he could almost see the questions they had written on their foreheads. It would have to wait, though. He usually gave his daily morning speech at 9 am to inform them of news, divide work and direct the Shadowhunters to the matters at hand.

Now he had a more important meeting so he swiftly made his way to his office.

A familiar figure stood with his back to the door, looking at the few pictures Alec had allowed himself to display on the fireplace.

“Jace,” he breathed out though he was pretty sure Jace had heard him enter. And if not, then he had certainly felt their bond pull tighter at their proximity.

“Hi,” Jace turned around to face him, his eyes careful, though Alec was glad he couldn’t see a single malevolent shadow cross his brother’s features. He looked away as soon as he caught up to the fact that he was trying to protect himself against his brother, his parabatai.

“Ja-”

“Ale-”

They both started at the same time, the edges of their lips pulling slightly upwards at the awkwardness of it all.

“Let me,” Jace tried again, brushing a hand through his golden locks and Alec only nodded in approval.

“I was a jerk. I know that,” a long sigh passed Jace’s lips. “And Magnus is… a good guy?” he made the last word sound like a question to which Alec only raised an eyebrow. “What I wanted to say is… what I said last night still stands. I will help you protect him and your relationship.” Jace finally locked gazes with him, “I will always have your back.”

The relief that bubbled inside Alec’s chest was almost overwhelming and on the verge of threatening to drown him. He took a deep breath before responding.

“I know it was wrong of me to hide and I’m sorry,” Jace looked like he was about to argue so Alec quickly continued. “I didn’t want to put you in danger, but I guess…it’s not always my call to make.”

“One of us has to be the voice of reason,” Jace smirked. “We both know it’s not me.”

Alec hesitated. Sometimes he forgot how easy it was to make up if he only opened his mouth to speak, “So? Are we good?”

Jace took a deep breath and Alec knew that he was testing their bond. Looking for any sourness or any malignant spark that usually tended to spread if not kept in check. When he found none, he looked back up in content, “We are.”

A tender pause settled between them where they didn’t have anything to add to the resolved issue but couldn’t quite move on to another subject either. Thankfully just when it was in danger of starting to border on discomfort, they got interrupted by a knock on the door.

Izzy popped her head in the door frame before deeming the coast clear and entering.

“You were eavesdropping,” Alec immediately accused but Izzy just shrugged.

“You guys tend to be horrible when it comes to speaking to each other so I just wanted to make sure.”

“We speak to each other,” Jace huffed.

“No, you think you’re protecting each other by keeping secrets and then one of you gets angry and the other refuses to admit his fault till the last possible second,” she grinned.

“We don’t do that,” Jace frowned, but his frown turned thoughtful. “A lot,” he added.

“Jace,” Alec hissed, delivering a light a smack on his shoulder.

“I love you too, brother,” he laughed in response.

“And I love you both,” Izzy huffed patting Alec while he was busy shooting glares of betrayal at his _parabatai_.

“Great, now that we know that we all love each other,” he turned to his sister, “was the only reason for your visit to make my life difficult?”

He had meant it as a joke or a tease, but Isabelle’s face turned somber and with that Jace’s smirk disappeared as well.

“What is it?”

Izzy pulled her lips tight as if hating the answer she was about to give, “Some people from the Clave have arrived and are wishing to speak to you.”

“Does that Hillway guy want another beating?” Jace growled.

Izzy shook her head, “It’s not them.” She looked back at the door suspiciously, as if waiting for the strangers to just barge in. “There’re a man and a woman I don’t recognize and they are insisting on speaking only with you.”

Alec squeezed the bridge of his nose. His good morning apparently was supposed to be short-lived. “Fine, let them in. Jace, go-”

“I’m staying,” was his _parabatai’s_ immediate response.

“Jace,” he groaned.

“I’m your second in command,” he crossed arms over his chest as if daring Alec to try and move him from his place. “Besides, this isn’t only your fight anymore,” he smiled placidly and winked at Izzy. “We’ll help.”

Izzy nodded and, looking at his siblings ready to take on the world for him and his cause – a cause they had no idea existed until last night – he loathed to admit that he was choked up.

“Thank you,” he answered, voice rough with emotion.

“You never have to thank us,” Jace clapped him on his back as he moved to stand next to Alec’s chair and motioned for him to sit. “How about we intimidate them as much as possible?”

“I’ll go get them,” Izzy moved to the door as they settled to wait for the new trouble Clave had sent for them.

Though when his office door opened again, Alec was surprised to only see a woman entering. Her red hair was tied in a single simple braid and moved like a snake behind her back as she wordlessly took her seat in front of Alec and Jace. The bold hair color immediately made her somewhat similar to Clary in Alec’s eyes, but as he took a closer at her cold grey eyes and stony, schooled features, that was where the similarity ended. Where Clary was a ball of over-eager, brave energy, this woman seemed almost dead. She didn’t so much as shuffle when taking her seat and once done that, she looked at him with a bored gaze, her back straight like a pulled string.

Alec felt apprehension pull at his bond and he didn’t have to look at Jace to know what he was saying.

_Be careful!_

The woman kept quiet so Alec did his best to not squirm under her gaze and made certain his voice sounded confident and without a single tremor or stutter in it.

“I’m Alec Lightwood, as I am sure you know.”

The strange woman blinked and seemed to take moment to answer.

“Yes, I am aware of you. My name is Morgan Freewater,” she introduced herself, her voice level and calm. She spoke almost in monotone, as if she made sure the vowels and sounds that came out of her sounded exactly the same and the pauses between would be of the same length. “I am here on behalf of the Clave.”

“I was told you came with a companion,” Alec nodded at her introduction, hoping his suspicion would not be as clear.

“There is another,” Freewater acknowledged, blinking slowly. “He has other business to attend to.”

Alec didn’t need to feel Jace’s displeasure to know that there was something shady going on. No one, not even Clave, got to wander around his Institute unchecked. He hoped Izzy had noticed it and was on it, for he didn’t dare to interrupt the eerie meeting to order her to do so. It felt less like he was welcoming a guest and more like he was constantly challenged, pressured and his reactions gauged, even when they had barely gotten past the introductions.

“And what is your business here?” He asked instead.

The woman made a solemn nod before opening her mouth.

“I am here to tell you that Clave deems your actions highly unsuitable.”

“My people do not deserve interrogations when they have done nothing wrong,” he argued but Freewater’s eyes sparked in what he could only describe as hate. The more human reaction both made his muscles relax and spasm once again. He swallowed his initial reaction and continued. “I stand behind my decision and my people. This Institute will not be interrogated if I have anything to say about it. The tensions with the Downworld are high as it is, my Shadowhunters cannot afford to be distracted by the Clave and their unfounded accusations.”

“The restriction still remains. No Shadowhunter is allowed any sort of personal contact with a Downworlder.”

“You say that like we’ve always lived separate lives. We may not be on the best of terms with them right now but there are Shadowhunters who’ve made friends with Downworlders, who interact with them. No Clave restriction can force them to cut their ties,” Alec clenched his fist at the passiveness of his visitor. He might as well have been talking to a wall.

“The Law is the Law,” the woman said, her gray gaze boring into his eyes. “I will remain here for an unspecified amount of time to see that it is abided by. And in my time here, I will further investigate into the security issue we have at hand.” When he shuffled in his seat and opened his mouth to voice his displeasure, she continued monotonously and without giving him a chance to interrupt. “Your daily life will not be impeded on. Interviews with the present Shadowhunters may occur if evidence shows any necessity for them and will be done in your presence.”

“And if I say no?” Alec challenged what he already saw as a losing battle and once against saw the spark of hate alight in her eyes.

“The Clave yielded to you once, Alec Lightwood. It will not do so again,” she announced and strode out of the room before Alec could form a sound. Only as the door shut did he register that she had allowed her tone to drop in the last two sentences and cold shudders ran over his back at the thought of it.

“She’s bad news,” Jace finally spoke up from next to him and the warm, familiar tone (though filled with worry) allowed his shoulder to sag.

“She’s on a whole other level to Hillway and his goons,” he brushed a hand over his face before looking up at Jace with what he knew to be fear written on his face. “There’s no way I can keep her in check.”

Jace’s gaze softened with sympathy, probably feeling the anguish that was rolling around in Alec’s stomach, before his forehead set in determination.

“We don’t have a choice, do we?” he clasped his shoulder, the spark in his eyes the only indication of the underlying meaning. A silent promise of devotion.

He nodded in agreement and rose from his chair when his office door banged open and crashed into the wall with a thunder-like noise.

“Wha-” he startled at the sight of Izzy rushing in.

She moved fast and urgently but he still noticed how big her dark eyes were and how pale her skin was in comparison to her red lips. The unhidden panic in her movements made his stomach drop and he wished he wouldn’t have risen from his chair.

“Iz?” Jace found his voice first.

“I was trying to find where the guy from Clave went when he wasn’t there to speak to you and I couldn’t find him.” Her big brown eyes flickered from Jace to him and the way they gained a look of pity as soon as they landed on him made all the worry, fear and anguish double in his stomach suddenly threatening to come out.

He _knew_. He knew what this was about. And he prayed to every God and Angel that he was wrong.

“When the woman left your office, the man showed up again,” she took a tentative pause as if to prepare them but the last thing Alec wanted was for her to stop and linger.

“And?” he rasped out, his heart beating like a wild bird against his ribcage.

“He said to her, ‘Bane is ready for you.’”

_‘Bane is ready for you.’_

_‘Bane is ready for you.’_

_‘Bane is ready for you.’_

He looked at her sister’s sorrowful eyes and then Jace’s furious ones, but he couldn’t feel sorrow or anger as the words sank in.

Magnus flashed in his eyes from this morning just as he was about to head off to the Institute.

_“Go,” Magnus said, his voice shaking with mirth as Alec lingered in his embrace, nose taking in the sandalwood scent. “I’ll be here when you come home.”_

_“I know you will,” Alec’s answer was muffled by the soft kisses he was pressing into Magnus’s skin before reluctantly pulling back and delivering a proper kiss on the warlock’s lips. “I love you.”_

_“I love you too,” Magnus laughed. He was bright, warm and happy. Hair wet from the shower and skin still flushed and make-up free. He looked peaceful as his whole face glowed with content bliss._

All Alec could think about now were the stone cold, lifeless eyes of Miranda Freewater and the horror it now brought him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So? Good? Bad? Sad tears? Happy tears?   
> Let me know what you all think!


	7. The Man

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I knew it has been a long time since I posted stuff, but damn, I had no idea I've been torturing you with no updates since April. Sorry for the wait. I'll try to do better but my summer job has been a hell on earth and is sapping every last bit of energy from me.
> 
> Anyway, huge thanks to my beta - shiny_starlight, and enjoy the chapter.

As Magnus eyed the bare concrete walls he had to admit that the choices and decisions he had made that led him to this room may not have the best he’d made in his life.

Maybe it was the peace and calm of the morning that had dulled his slight, but ever present, sense of paranoia or maybe it was the surprise at seeing a grim-faced Shadowhunter at his doorstep only half an hour after Alec had left. Either way, when the Shadowhunter announced that he has been summoned to the Institute, Magnus couldn't find a good enough reason to refuse.

One thing was clear though; if Alec had known about this sudden visit to the Shadowhunter hub, he would have warned him beforehand.

So, Magnus had agreed. He didn't want to cause trouble to Alec by refusing, especially since he had a pretty good idea what the visit was all about. Besides, he wasn't the High Warlock for nothing. He could take care of himself just fine if things went south.

“Warlock Bane.” The heavy wooden door groaned on its hinges as it opened, letting in the same soldier who had accompanied him and the promptly left him to his own mussing in the dreadfully drab and tasteless room.

He hadn't been waiting long, but the whole situation was annoying and ridiculous enough to require a bitter response from him.

“Shadowhunter… John”, he crossed his legs and leaned back.

“My name is not John,” the man growled.

Magnus could only smirk at how predictable Shadowhunters were in their behavior. Always with the growling. You would think it was physically impossible for them to be nice.

“Well, you look like a John,” he explained. “Doesn't seem fair that only you get to call me names, now does it?”

To Magnus' disappointment, the Shadowhunter didn't respond and instead, settled himself in the corner, leaning on one shoulder, his gazed fixed on Magnus. After several long moments, he still hadn’t replied, and Magnus sighed. What was the point of the man if he wasn’t even going to talk to him? In response to the silence (and the stare), Magnus decided to return the favor and let his own gaze rest on the demon hunter before him.

The man had clearly seen his own share of battles: Magnus could see not only the wide variety of runes peaking from under the edges of clothing but also a disturbing amount of scarring. The most prominent and eye-catching was a large slash across the side of the man's face that ran from his hairline down to his chin. His hair had some salt and pepper to it, but the bulging muscles contradicted the appearance of age. Magnus wasn't weakly built by any means, but the man's biceps were the size of his head and he couldn't help but feel sorry for whoever had gone hand to hand with the man. The lightly gray beard gave him a disheveled look, the scar tissue under it making it look slightly patchy and the dark eyes under the bushy brows were clearly trying to ignore him.

All in all, Magnus decided that he preferred it much more when he was alone in the room. Annoyed at himself for feeling so intimidated he was about to make another snarky remark when a faint click of heels stopped outside the doors. He turned to face the door, debating with himself the odds of it being Isabelle on the other side before the door opened revealing a redhead with stone-cold expression.

“Mr. Bane,” she spoke, her voice level and as equally void of emotion as her expression. “I am pleased to see you've accepted our invitation. I'm Morgan Freewater, I see you've met my partner Caleb.”

She definitely didn't look pleased, Magnus thought but said nothing. Also, it wasn't so much an invitation as much as a demand, he mussed to himself.

“I'm pleased with the progress of this Institute in regard to the Downworld,” he explained. “I saw no reason to refuse. However,” he eyed them both closely, giving each a pointed look. “I think we all know I haven't been summoned by the New York Institute.”

“You're right,” the woman inclined her head. “This is a separate Clave investigation conducted by me and my partner alone.”

“And what have I done that I've earned myself a separate Clave investigation?” he asked for the sake of amusement. The woman took her seat opposite the table and settled her cold gaze upon him more firmly.

She pulled a piece of paper out of her gray jacket and slid it across the table. Magnus didn't have to look twice to know it was the same picture Alec had shown him.

“And?” he raised an unimpressed eyebrow at her.

Her eyebrow twitched in annoyance, but otherwise, she remained calm.

“We would like an explanation,” she put her arms down on the table, folding them in perfect straight angles. Magnus thought that he would have much more preferred if she had started to growl. In all his encounters with the Shadowhunters, he could count on one hand the number of people who showed such restraint. Maryse Lightwood being one of them.

“I don't see anything needing explanation,” he answered brusquely. The need to defend and protect his lover was dangerously thrumming underneath his skin but Magnus was determined to keep his cool. He had done a decent job at it so far and he wasn’t about to give up now.

“I can assure you, no harm will come to you,” Morgan spoke in a voice that completely failed to give him any reassurance. “Our purpose is to determine the level of a security breach. No Downworlder is going to be hurt,”

Magnus huffed, “Since when is helping an injured Shadowhunter a security breach? It's not really my M-O to ignore a person in need.” Magnus spoke slowly, choosing his words and tone very carefully. He had to remind himself that the Clave only had bits and pieces of information and not the whole picture. The last thing he wanted was to give them any help in piecing it all together.

Morgan's eyes flashed in anger, but she didn't so much as shift a muscle. Caleb, on the other hand, grimaced in disgust at him.

“We both know that's not all it is,” her brows raised as if to challenge him and prove her wrong: A trap Magnus recognized in a heartbeat. “A source has witnessed you... showing affection to each other.”

Magnus was too late in stopping a snort that broke free. The way the woman spoke almost made it seem as if the redhead didn't know what affection was.

“Showing affection?” he challenged. “I'm afraid you'll have to be more specific.”

The woman's upper lip halfway lifted into snarl before she got her expression under control, “You are fully aware of what we mean.”

Magnus shook his head and rolled his eyes: this woman's emotional level was equal to that of a brick wall. “Anyway,” he sighed. “If you’re concerned about being a threat to your security, I can assure, our pillow talk definitely did not consist of going over the Institutes security protocols. I have neither the intent nor the knowledge to cause, especially now that we are more or less starting to be civil with one another.”

Morgan shifted, leaned back in her seat and eyed him with an almost amused expression. It felt weirdly unnerving to Magnus. “So, you’re completely fine with the Soul Sword Massacre?” she asked.

“People make mistakes,” Magnus shrugged his shoulders. “I cannot speak for everyone; a lot of good people were lost. And a lot of people are grieving them.”

“But you would still fraternize with a Shadowhunter?” she inquired, her tone so distant and cold, almost as if she wasn’t aware (or more likely didn’t care) how rude she was prying into his personal life like this. Magnus decided to point that out.

“I don't believe the Clave has any authority over my personal life. And since it is not your business, I don't owe you an answer.”

She leaned forward slightly and narrowed her eyes at him. “If it involves a Shadowhunter, we make it our business.”

Magnus huffed, “And there’s your problem! The Clave's authority is legitimate as long as the Shadowhunter is on-duty.” He let disproval and annoyance seep into his voice, as if he were talking to a particularly unruly child and tapped the photograph still on the table. “What happens in their personal life should not be written in reports and piled up in boxes only so that your higher-ups can entertain themselves with other people's lives when they probably don't have a love life themselves.”

Morgan let out a slow breath of disappointment before continuing, “I would be very careful of what I said if I were you, Mr. Bane.”

“I could say the same thing,” he countered. He’d grown tired of this useless conversation, of going back and forth and getting nowhere. It didn’t matter how long it went on: the end result would still be the same. He wanted it to be over and he wanted to get away from the woman's dead stare. “If you brought me here in hopes I would give up my lover to be punished for a crime that's not even a crime, then this is a waste of all of our time.” He stood up from the chair, noticing how Caleb, who had just stood in the corner silent like a statue, shifted slightly in his direction. “I believe this meeting is over.”

“We will get him,” Morgan spoke up as he was straightening out the wrinkles on his shirt from being seated for so long. “And he will be made an example of.”

“Then you will be creating a rift between the Shadowhunters and Downworlders that you won't be able to fix,” he eyed her sternly. It didn’t seem like Morgan was in a hurry to stop him.

“And you will lead a Shadowhunter to his death,” she answered simply.

Magnus bit back the strong words that were begging to be spat at the woman and moved for the entrance. He was ready to fling Caleb across the entire room but a simple gesture from Morgan ground him to his spot.

He left without looking back.

Ignoring the nagging feeling in the back of his mind he prioritized getting out of the place, weaving his way through hallways and stairs, cursing the thick network of passageways built under the Institute. When he finally made his way to one the main staircases he was beyond relieved and ready to leave the damp, moldy place.

He only made it up a couple of flights when the sound of footsteps from above made him stop. Somebody wasn't just walking down the dimly lit stairs. No, this particular individual was full on sprinting, their footsteps almost re-vibrating in the stone walls.

Magnus was already preparing to meet another unpleasant Shadowhunter when a blond mop caught his eyes followed by surprised, mismatched eyes.

“Jace,” he blinked, taking in the disheveled and panting Shadowhunter.

“Oh, thank the Angel, Magnus,” he got out as he skidded to a stop and took a couple of big breaths. “You're okay!”

“Of course, I'm okay,” he frowned and was met with an equal frown on Jace's part.

“But the people from the Clave... we heard-”

“Oh yes, I had a lovely meeting with a pair of Shadowhunters,” he threw a glance backward, the survival instincts he had honed for hundreds of years not allowing him to fully turn his back on the alarming Nephilim, even if they were a good distance away.

“Did they do anything? I swear we didn't know! They didn't- ”

“I already gathered that it was done behind Alexander's back,” he interrupted the blond again, starting forward, the need to leave the drab hallways crawling at his spine. “I'm fine. They don't-”, he choked on his next words, stopping mid-step.

“Magnus?” Jace questioned as the warlock threw a startled look back from where he came and then faced the Shadowhunter with wide fearful eyes.

“They know,” he whispered.

“What?” Jace shook his head in confusion.

“They know that it's a _he_ ,” he insisted again but swallowed his next words. The Institute's walls tended to have ears in every small corner and dark nook: it was not safe to talk here. “Let's go,” he said instead, starting upwards the stairs in a brisk walk.

Despite just recovering from a sprint, Jace had no trouble keeping up with his long strides and it wasn't before long that Magnus finally opened the door to reveal one of the many lit hallways of the Institute's main floor.

And as they stepped out, the air around Jace changed. His shoulders pulled back, his hand migrated to the handle of his deactivated blade and his spine straightened in arrogance which was expected when dealing with a Downworlder. Magnus formed a scowl appropriate of a man whose last thread of patience was wearing thin and allowed Jace to take the lead.

“If you would, I'll take you to Alec,” Jace looked straight into his eyes. The soft, almost hurt look in his eyes betrayed the coldness in his voice. “The Head of the Institute would like to personally apologize for this unpleasant situation.”

He knew full well where his boyfriend's office was, but he didn't want to add to the already distrustful and almost downright disgusting stares by confidently marching around the Institute and somehow offending the Shadowhunters even more.

Instead, Magnus worked on keeping his eyes bored and his scowl always present, a process he was quite successful in until the moment Jace opened Alec's office doors. Alec froze in a mid-stride his head snapping towards them so fast it seemed like a blur. The raw relief in his eyes and the shuddered breath he took broke something in Magnus. He snapped his fingers to ward the room and in a couple of steps gathered Alec in his arms. The Shadowhunter wove his long arms around him in a crushing embrace tethering on the edge of pain.

Not that Magnus was complaining.

“I'm okay. It's fine,” he stroked the black locks of his archer and shushed his relieved gasps of “you're safe, you're here” that seemed to flow past Alec's lips without any control. However, his shoulders remained tight despite the warm embrace of his lover. He wasn’t a coward and he was far from embarrassed about his relationship but just the thought that they were showing affection to each other when all that separated them from the entire New York body of Shadowhunters was one closed door made the hairs stand up on the back on his neck and his nerves tingle. On the other side of the door, there was a world that was becoming increasingly more hostile toward their relationship.

A movement to his left caught his attention and he noticed Isabelle moving to stand next to Jace as they whispered something to each other. Their audience shook him from the comfort of Alexander’s arms and he released a frustrated breath as he pulled away. Alec let go of him reluctantly, his fingers twitching where they grasped his hands, refusing to lose body contact completely.

Magnus only hoped that Alexander saw the look on his face and understood that the feeling was mutual despite him being the one to break the embrace.

He was basically in enemy territory, and need to keep a clear head and steeled heart, and there was nothing about Alexander or the feelings the man had for the Shadowhunter that provided either of those things. He couldn’t afford the luxury of bathing in the fuzzy feeling of love when the very same thing seemed to be in danger.

So with reluctance, he straightened his spine and Magnus’ entire demeanor changed. He went from Alexander’s lover to the High Warlock of Brooklyn and was relieved to see that the hazel eyes he adored so much harden as Alec also donned the mantle of leadership once again.

They will comfort each other in the evening, curled around each other underneath Magnus’s fancy sheets and whispering words of love and adoration.

But here, in this moment, they needed to be leaders and they needed to be warriors, and if there was one thing they knew how to do, it was to fight for the things they believed in. And Magnus was sure there was nothing they both believed in more than the feeling quietly but fiercely thrumming between them.

Magnus watched Alec brush a hand over his face, his eyes settling on him in fierce determination, “Tell me everything.”

Magnus let out a dry laugh as he leaned back against Alec’s desk, “There’s not much to tell. The Shadowhunter came to my door shortly after you left. I didn’t want to create unnecessary tension so I agreed to come down to the Institute. We waited until his partner came, she did most of the talking. The man mostly was just growling.” Magnus crossed his ankles as he thought back to that room. His voice seemed nonchalant and he was almost proud of how unaffected he sounded.

“Morgan,” Alec supplied and Magnus nodded in agreement.

“The woman is as hard as a stone and about of the same emotional capability. Anyway, they asked questions. Asked to give up _my_ Shadowhunter,” he made quotation signs at the word _my_ , “promised I wouldn’t come to any harm. It was a huge waste of my morning, to be honest,” Magnus couldn’t hold back and disapprovingly shook his head.

“What was that in the dungeons, then?” Jace questioned. Alec’s head immediately snapping to his brother and then back to Magnus, worry increasing in his eyes. Magnus sighed. He didn’t want to worry Alec unnecessarily: he would have eventually told the Shadowhunters what he found out but Jace blurting things out only increased Alec’s anxiety about the whole situation.

“What happened in the dungeons?”

“I managed to agitate my lovely interrogator enough for her to let something slip,” Magnus explained.

“You made Freewater lose her cool?” Jace gaped at the same time as Alec asked, “What was it?”

Magnus raised an eyebrow at Jace, “Don’t sound so surprised, blondie. I have a spectacular talent in making all the people I meet lose their cool.”

Isabelle huffed in amusement as Magnus turned to answer Alec.

“Unfortunately, it’s not good news.”

“Magnus?” Isabelle took a step forward, her brows furrowing in worry.

“They know that my lover is a _he_ ,” he sighed, giving a sincere look to both Izzy and Alec.

It was Jace who seemed the least surprised.

“And? Wasn’t it clear from the photo?”

Magnus shook his head, “You say that now because you know it’s Alec, but if you look at the photo from a stranger’s view you cannot really tell if it’s a woman or a man.”

Jace didn’t seem convinced. “Show it to me.”

Magnus snapped his fingers and the picture landed in Jace’s open palm. The blond examined the photo, Isabelle crowding in next to him to do the same.

“He has a point,” Isabelle hummed. “Since Alec’s back is facing the camera and his head is leaning against Magnus’ shoulder with Magnus’ hand obstructing the view, it could just as well be a woman. Besides the runed arm and the sword, the darkness makes it impossible to say for certain the gender.”

“But that’s clearly a man’s bicep,” Jace argued pointing to the picture.

Izzy moved so fast Magnus could barely blink before Jace had been whacked in the head.

“You say that like we, women, have no muscles. Of course, it couldn’t be a petite woman like Clary, but someone of mom’s stature could easily fit the picture.”

“Ugh,” Magnus' head turned to the sound of Alec gagging. “Iz, I never want to hear that sentence ever again.”

He smirked at Alec’s look of pure disgust, noticing that Alec’s siblings were equally amused.

“Sorry, brother, just proving a point.”

“Consider the point proved,” Alec visibly shivered.

“But the issue stands,” Magnus shook himself back to the subject at hand. “They’ve narrowed it down to the gender and who knows what else they might know.”

“Fine, they know I’m not a she,” Alec sighed, giving Izzy a glare. “It’s still half of the Shadowhunter population. We could still have some time to get ahead of this.”

“Maybe less than you think,” Izzy argued, plucking the picture out of Jace’s hand where she had been staring at it. “Somebody took it right?” she said, waving it in the air.

Alec nodded in confusion, “They said it’s an anonymous source.”

“Exactly. So whoever took the picture knows about you two,” Izzy’s wide eyes bore into the both of them. “Except for the darkness, the photo is clear enough to have been taken in close range. A zoomed-in picture would have been grainy, but you can clearly see the runes here.”

“Impossible,” Alec shook his head even as Magnus felt something twist in his stomach at the memory of that night. “Whenever we’re out, Magnus always has a spell that warns him if there’s someone with malicious intent nearby. He would have felt the presence.”

“Not…not quite,” he forced the word out, wincing as Alec’s eyes snapped in his direction with shock.

“What do you mean?” Jace asked where Alec was still mute.

He sighed. “Alec was hurt. My one and only focus was healing him.”

“You could’ve missed that presence,” Izzy understood and Magnus hated to nod in agreement. He had made an honest mistake and now he could almost physically feel Alec’s shoulders drop in defeat.

Alec’s gaze dropped to the ground for a couple of moments before voice left his lips.

“Then we find the source,” he announced before raising his head with a new determination lighting his eyes. “We find whoever took that picture before they come for Magnus again and do something worse than an interview.”

Magnus blinked. His heart was tearing in pieces, partly in awe and admiration but mostly in pain and realization that Alec probably didn’t hear in his words what was so clear to Magnus. And apparently everyone else in the room.

“Alec,” Jace was the first one to speak where Magnus and Izzy were still silent, thinking of the best way to break it to Alec. “You do know that it’s going to be you who they come for first, right? You’re the one in the danger of de-runing.”

Alec met his brothers stare with sincere confidence.

“Magnus is mine to protect.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Leave a comment and let me know what you think! :)


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